‘The Narratives Have Changed’: WHO’s Attempt to Make Alcohol Less Socially Acceptable Could Cause Existential Crisis for Booze Biz

The recent efforts implemented by the WHO in Europe could leave the booze biz in crisis. (Photo: Ian West/PA Wire URN:19631739)

Meininger’s International issued a warning to professionals working in the wine industry on Tuesday about the fact that industry players in the alcoholic beverage industry should pay attention to the shifting attitudes toward alcohol consumption due to information released by the World Health Organization.

This is the latest piece to make waves after the bombshell that was January’s study from the WHO was dropped, citing that no amount of alcohol consumption is safe.

One can’t help but be reminded of what happened to the tobacco industry in the mid-1960s, when the surgeon general concluded that smoking caused cancer. The evidence caused a three-decade decline in smoking, according to the National Library of Medicine.

Although this ultimately proved to benefit public health, it was a blow to tobacco marketing agencies and professionals who worked in big tobacco.

Those who work in the booze biz may be wondering — is alcohol next?

According to the Executive Director of the Portuguese Association for Wine and Spirits Ana Isabel Alves, the story around alcohol consumption is shifting.

“We call this the de-normalization project,” Alves said, according to Meninger’s International. “This new narrative is about making alcoholic beverages less socially acceptable, like with tobacco.”

Alves cites other countries and the way certain regulations — such as banning cigarettes in restaurants — have made smoking extremely difficult and frowned upon. Most of these regulations were driven by the WHO.

In 2022, the WHO planned coordinated efforts in alcohol pricing, availability, health information and a focus on labeling in Europe.

The document, “Turning Down The Alcohol Flow,” outlined the European action plan for regulating booze in the continent.

The WHO stated in the document that of the 10 countries with the “highest levels of consumption in the world, nine are located in the WHO European Region, where alcohol also makes the largest contribution to all-cause mortality.”

The document cited a number of deaths amounting to 1 million from alcohol abuse.

Additionally, in what could be a potentially disastrous move for alcohol brands, the WHO is recommending a ban on all alcohol advertising and new restrictions on where alcohol can be present — including large-scale events.

The issue is a complicated one, to say the least, and some of these major alcohol marketing companies may find themselves in similar situations like Don Draper’s character in the opening episode of “Mad Men,” when the ad man was left scrambling to find a new way to market tobacco after studies about the dangers of tobacco were released.

In June 2018, five major booze brands helped fund a 7,800-person study overseen by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, suggesting that moderate drinking was safe, according to Vox. The study was ultimately terminated over fears of the involvement of large alcohol brands yielding biased results.

In America, the current regulations claim that one drink a day for women and two for men are considered “acceptable” amounts of alcohol consumption, which is within the CDC’s Dietary Guidelines for Alcohol. Yet, Pandemic-fueled imbibing and higher mortality rates may just indicate the current regulations are too lax.

As recently as August, the alcohol czar for President Joe Biden suggested limiting drinking to as little as two beers per week. The current President was met with pushback from Conservatives like Ted Cruz, who filmed himself drinking beer during a live television interview, and the footage received a barrage of jokes and mockery.

Yet, members of the WHO remain firm in their stance. Dr. Carina Ferreira-Borges, the acting unit lead for noncommunicable disease management and regional advisor for alcohol and illicit drugs in the WHO Regional Office for Europe put it plainly:

“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol use. It doesn’t matter how much you drink — the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage.”

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