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Super Bowl 51: Tostitos Reveals ‘Party Safe’ Bag To Fight Drunk Driving

By Brad Faber
Published on: 05:15 PST, Jan 26, 2017

Super Bowl 51 is right around the corner, and Tostitos has revealed a new “Party Safe” bag that can detect whether or not a partygoer has been drinking, according to Adweek.

Obviously, for many, it has long been a tradition to enjoy snacks and have a good time during the Super Bowl. It is certainly not uncommon for alcohol to be present at a Super Bowl party, either.

Tostitos, a Frito-Lay company and well-known manufacturer of tortilla chips and also dips, is working to make sure party-goers get home safely and reduce the number of drunk driving-related incidents this Super Bowl Sunday.

Tostitos has also partnered with Uber and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) on this endeavor. Uber and MADD both makes sense as natural partners. Uber, a company founded in San Francisco eight years ago, helps put a passenger in touch with a driver with a simplicity of an app. MADD has been fighting drunk driving since its founding in 1980.

According to Adweek, who cites information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were a total of 45 drunk driving-related fatalities on Super Bowl Sunday in 2015. Delanie Walker, a tight end for the Tennessee Titans who now works with MADD, was also quoted in the Adweek article.

Walker sadly lost his aunt and uncle to a drunk driver after Super Bowl 47 (2013). Walker, who played for the San Francisco 49ers at the time, also appeared in Super Bowl 47.

“Drunk driving is 100 percent preventable,” Walker tells Adweek. “Thanks to Tostitos and Uber, it’s easier than ever to make a safe choice if your plans include alcohol.”

According to Adweek, the Tostitos “Party Safe” bag has “a sensor connected to a microcontroller,” which enables it detect trace amounts of alcohol when someone breathes on the bag. In the event that it discovers a hint of alcohol, the sensor lights up in red. A steering wheel also appears on the bag with the words “don’t drink and drive” flashing beneath.

An “Uber code” will also appear if alcohol is detected, and according to Adweek, the “Party Safe” bag has “near-field communication (NFC) technology.” With NFC technology, a user can simply use their phone to “tap the bag” and request an Uber ride, according to Adweek.

“Our goal is to remove 25,000 cars from the roads that Sunday evening,” Jennifer Saenz, Chief Marketing Officer of Frito-Lay, tells Adweek. “Whether watching the big game at a friend’s house or at a local bar, a safe ride home is just a few easy taps away.”

The “Party Safe” bag is a creation of Goodby Silverstein & Partners, per Adweek. It is important to note, however, that the bag does not function as a breathalyzer, so it won’t be able to show if someone if over the legal limit to drive. According to Adweek, while it has the ability to find “traces of alcohol,” it doesn’t actually measure whether or not someone might have had too much to drink.

According to USA Today, the “Party Safe” bags will not be made publicly available. However, USA Today was able to test one out, and reported that it functioned as advertised.

“As nifty as it sounds, don’t look for these at your local grocery. The bags won’t be sold to the public, though USA TODAY was able to get its hands on one of them and can confirm that it does indeed work.”

Between now and the big game, USA Today also reports that Frito-Lay will be distributing “25,000 $10 Uber discounts” to anyone who buys any of the company’s chips. If you happen to be one of the first 25,000 people, PC Magazine says to simply “look for the barcode” on the backside of the bag.

Super Bowl 51 will take place on Sunday, February 5, with kickoff being scheduled for 6:30 p.m EST. The game, which will air on FOX, will feature the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons. Country star Luke Bryan will sing the National Anthem, and pop star Lady Gaga will be performing at the halftime show.

Will you be enjoying a bag of Tostitos while watching Super Bowl 51?

[Featured Image by Joe Robbins/Getty Images]

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