Retailers not convinced about alcohol labelling switch

Thursday, 14 January 2010

Reacting to Conservative public health proposals entitled a ‘Healthier Nation' published on 13 January, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said there would need to be evidence that centilitres of alcohol labelling would be more effective than the well-established unit labelling system which, is now on virtually all own-brand alcohol products and is increasingly gaining customer acceptance.

BRC members have already pledged a third of the £5m that the drinks industry is providing to secure the future of Drinkaware. This is the independent body, paid for by the alcohol industry, which helps customers think about their alcohol consumption and encourages them to drink responsibly.

This is in addition to the millions of pounds-worth of free advertising retailers provide in-store and on packaging for campaigns run by Drinkaware.

Stephen Robertson, BRC director general, said: "Retailers fully support clear information for customers - that's why our members have been rolling out the Department of Health's alcohol unit labelling on their own-label products for the past two years.

"It's not the only way of providing information but it's the one we've invested in and is increasingly being accepted by customers.

"We'd need to see evidence that changing to another system would produce benefits outweighing the cost and confusion from making the switch.

"Retailers are already driving sensible attitudes to alcohol through initiatives, such as funding Drinkaware and Challenge 25, which prevents under-age sales. We believe in responsible drinking too.

"But, the proposal to ban low-cost alcohol will not make a difference. There is no link between the price of alcohol and irresponsible consumption. What will work is cultural change and that is what retailers are helping to achieve."

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Mark Fettig said:

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The LABEL change needs to come in where it's currently labeled as a RIGHT. By labeling it as a PRIVILEGE instead, it could be treated like a gun permit. Alcohol education cla*ses should come in advance of the permitting (21 law). Gun permits don't stop crime, but the're less likely to abuse something they want. DUII's are often just a sign someone's a loaded gun - the most improperly ignored misdeed to the original victim of LABELING.