A recent presentation examined how alcohol products are priced, promoted and sold in the Smithville area, revealing some alcoholic beverages can be cheaper than a bottle of Coke and are often packaged in ways that could appeal to youth. The information was shared by Smithville Community in Action Program Director Jennifer Rhoad during the recent Substance Abuse Free Environments (SAFE) meeting.According to Rhoad, Smithville Community in Action participated in a national survey from Jan. 10 to March 3. The project collected information on 12 specific products, using six data collectors and a list of 54 retailers. Of those, 50 retailers were visited and 49 had “items of interest” toward the survey.The data collection process included point-of-sale marketing strategies, which the presentation defined as encompassing the “four Ps”: price, place, product and promotion. Price referred to retail pricing and discount strategies; place addressed where p...