Warning labels on alcoholic drinks soon law

Brian Hayward WEEKEND POST REPORTER haywardb@avusa.co.za

IN less than four months‘ time all alcoholic drinks will come with a warning label.

Anti-alcohol lobby groups are happy about the move, but industry insiders fear it is just the tip of the iceberg in the government‘s fast-tightening grip on the multi-billion rand industry.

As with the tobacco industry – which first was forced by law to put warning labels on all cigarette packets, followed by a ban on advertising – the alcohol industry is scrambling to prepare itself for a marketing blackout which they believe is only “a matter of time”.

Already major retailers have started receiving liquor supplies with the warning labels which read: “Alcohol reduces driving ability – don‘t drink and drive” and “Drinking during pregnancy can be harmful to your unborn baby”.

By the end of February, alcoholic drinks must carry warning labels.

The ANC Youth League has stepped up its call from March this year for a total ban on alcohol advertisements, as well as the re-introduction of the ban on selling liquor on a Sunday.

National ANCYL spokesman Floyd Shivambu told Weekend Post: “This is a resolution adopted at the Youth League‘s 23rd national congress (earlier this year). We want to see this happen.”

But, say analysts, the expected ban will force the industry to adopt clandestine marketing techniques, such as the controversial cigarette promotion “smoking parties”, organised by companies which then aggressively push their products on party-goers.

“If the government tightened on cigarettes the way they did, they‘ll do it to the alcohol industry for sure,” said Ray Edwards, Spar national buyer for their liquor outlet Tops. “We are all bracing ourselves for it.”

Already many companies have begun investigating ways to use the internet to sell their products. It would not count as advertising since visitors to such websites would willingly view them.

“We call it the darkening period – the darkening of the ability to sell our product,” said Edwards.

Industry executives agree the ban will only be enforced after soccer‘s 2010 World Cup, as the government has already committed to a deal with one of the major Fifa sponsors, US beer Budweiser.

SA Breweries said the ban would hurt consumers, inhibiting them from making the choices they wanted.

“There is no convincing evidence that advertising influences total (alcohol) consumption, or has an impact on levels of alcohol abuse,” said spokesman Janine van Stolk.

“Advertising of alcohol beverages is aimed at people who are above the legal drinking age. SAB does not advertise its products on television before 5pm during the week or 1pm over the weekend, and advertisements are only placed at times when at least 70% of the audience is 18 years or older.”

But groups aimed at curbing alcohol abuse say the ban will ease the societal bane of alcoholism.

“Alcohol adverts makes it look as if not having a cold beer is a major disaster and many adverts are targeted at the youth,” said Trixie Pereira, head of prevention at The South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (Sanca) in Port Elizabeth.

“A lot of youngsters are influenced by what they see, so a ban would be a good thing, with fewer youngsters experimenting with alcohol.”

According to Medical Research Council substance abuse epidemiologist and policy analyst Professor Charles Parry, the government‘s attitude towards the abuses associated with alcohol was hardening, with increasing recognition of the need to take more decisive action.

But, he said, it would only drive the industry to other forms of selling drinks. “I am sure that if above-the- line alcohol advertising were banned the industry would look for other forms of promotion as the tobacco industry has done. This, however, should not be a deterrent to action.”

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