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PUBLIC HEALTH CHARITY Alcohol Action Ireland has raised concerns over the alcohol industry’s widespread promotion of their brands’ zero-alcohol drinks, suggesting the courts should consider whether it may amount to a “flouting” of advertising laws in some cases.
The charity is concerned that alcohol companies, which are bound by restrictions around the advertising of alcoholic beverages, are increasing their marketing of non-alcoholic drinks in order to promote their brand.
In Ireland, the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 prohibits the advertising of alcohol in certain places like public parks and playgrounds, on public transport, and in or near schools.
It is also banned at sporting events and events aimed at children.
The Act defines advertising as “any form of commercial communication with the aim or direct or indirect effect of promoting an alcohol product”.
It says that includes:
Alcohol Action Ireland believes that the alcohol industry’s move towards advertising non-alcoholic beverages that they produce should be brought to the courts to receive clarity on the application of the law.
In a statement, CEO Dr Sheila Gilheany said that the legislation is “very clear, and while it’s open to the court to interpret, there is a very strong case to be made”.
“How can a brand use its logo and trademark yet claim its main product is not being advertised?” Dr Gilheany said.
“What is the point of our legislation if it is simply being overridden by commercial interests? These ads are being run during the day, which will also make a mockery of the broadcast watershed on alcohol advertising when it becomes operational from Jan 2025 if this is not addressed,” she said.
“We would be keen to find out if the HSE and/or the Department of Health is going to take action on this and if not, why not.”
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I would have thought that zero alcohol was their main aim!
@Brian Hunt: seems a bit over the top tbh. I mean, unless they think it will act as a gateway to people wanting to sample the alcoholic versions, but it’s not like most people don’t know they exist anyway.
@Brian Hunt: It’s an interesting point, though: “How can a brand use its logo and trademark yet claim its main product is not being advertised?”
@Brendan O’Brien: No problem with diet and zero beverages though. The double-standards are quite something here.
@Laois Weather: Manufacturers of diet and zero beverages don’t also produce alcoholic drinks with the same branding. It’s not a double standard.
@Brian Hunt: Exactly. if people switched to zero alcohol drinks, maybe the Irish pub would get a new lease of life again. The demise in pub drinking is down to drink driving laws. I would have thought advertising zero alcohol drinks would be a great idea.
@Brian Hunt: But the big alcohol companies are using the 0 alcohol to get their branding around alcohol advertising restrictions. Guinness 0 for the Rugby is a prime example, it’s purely a way to get the main alcohol brand back in spotlight. That’s the issue. The big alcohol companies only got interested in 0 alcohol versions when they realised the advertising potential.
@Patrick MC Dermott: probably more due to a pint being nearly 7 euro i reckon.
@Roy Dowling: You do know that Coke doesn’t contain alcohol? How are the cases the same?
I am merely saying that AAI makes an interesting point about branding.
@Setanta O’Toole: How much is the zero alcohol version?
@Conor McNamara: i dunno. What does that have to do with my point?
@Setanta O’Toole: They probably consider water a gateway to alcohol…
This illustrates the mentality of people that want to ban things, rather than allow other adults to make their own decisions, for them no control measures will ever be enough, they simy want a ban or prohibition, regardless of what they say to the contrary, their minds all other measures are just incremental steps towards that goal.
“We want people to drink less, and show there’s zero alcohol beer!”
Also: “We have a problem with showing people about zero alcohol beer!”
@Dan Skelton: They’re a bunch of Karens, never happy.
@Dan Skelton: the opposite too the way we want people to fly less, but allow airlines to advertise and not tax aviation fuel.
It’s great to see that so many brands are now offering zero alcohol choices, keep up the advertisement.
@maritoj: Absolutely agree. Prior to these drinks being available you were stuck with a fruit juice or a Coke ! At least now you can look like you’re having a drink – something men in particular appreciate !
@Margret Walsh: I wouldn’t care about the look of it at all. In the past, I’ve gone out and drank soft drinks for the night and I’d be absolutely sick of them by the end of the night and have a sugar withdrawal hangover the next morning. Don’t get this with alcohol free beers and Guinness now in particular has a great alternative if driving.
Crowd of killjoys, never happy. They continue to hammer the ordinary Jane and Joe who responsibly enjoy a beer – alcohol or non-alcohol regardless, because of a small minority who cause trouble in society and cannot manage themselves responsibly. High time they were told where to go in no uncertain terms.
@Laois Weather: You really are someone who has no understanding of addiction.
We’re getting to be a nanny state. Ban everything.
@noel donohue: Getting to be? We’re rolling into the destination station already Noel!
The charity is spot on. The alcohol companies know that zero alcohol count for probably 0.001% of sales. They are circumventing the ban on advertising and are targeting young people at the same time.
@John Fagan: Well, maybe if the price of non alcoholic drinks were significantly lower, that would change things.
If a huge part of the price of a pint of stout goes on alcohol-excise then that argument doesn’t hold for the zero alc counterparts.
@John Fagan: totally agree. It is a side step by the alcohol companies. BIG Guinness add on the pitches at the 6 nations. Oh but there is a O.O beside it so it’s ok. Come on you’re fooling nobody lads.
Can anyone here tell me what Alcohol Action Charity does.? How is it a charitable organisation. In what way does it contribute to, or benefit anybody?
@Patrick MC Dermott: If you really want to know, why not search online?
@Patrick MC Dermott: Do YoUr OwN ReSeArCh!
Personally I have cut down heavily on achol in recent years and zero aclchol have been a great help. You can drive to the pub have a zero and still be social there is no longer a sigma about it. I honestly think it is a great development.
When I see a 0.0% beer advertisement it makes me want to go for the full alcohol version because I have no cop on and I need someone else to do the thinking for me! Bring it all down!
Off the drink for 4 months and enjoying a non alcoholic beer over the weekend…promote this stuff away..hopefully kids take up non alcoholic as the fashion and the real poison gets thrown to the kerb…
The Government of Ireland sponsors advertising, as I see today in another article.
They could sponsor genuine advertising for cleaner air, water, and countryside, but they choose to promote human control of the weather/temperature, which is false and disruptive advertising.
The Equinox is happening now, and no articles celebrate this great planetary event that defines the seasons and climate. False advertising promotes imaging manipulation for a horrifying view of the Equinox for those not subject to false scientific method advertising.
apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210922.html
A constant drumbeat of climate doom and gloom is advertising.
@Gerald Kelleher: we’d a great spring, the time the planes weren’t flying over in covid 20 and the time the volcano erupted in Iceland in 2010. The vapour trails from planes lead to more cloud formation in the upper atmosphere, thus leading to more rain.
@Jimmy Wallace: You make a great target audience for net-zero advertising based on a mixture of science fantasy and science fiction.
Non-alcoholic wine is grape juice, non-alcoholic beer is barley juice.
Is it a whole bunch of women behind this organization because they quite clearly are never happy
Another set of ngo trying to over rule the majority
It’s time to ban the ban brigade!
No need to worry…They taste Vile!!! All the adverts in the world wouldn’t make me try them again!!!
Ban ff/fg publishing their achievments ,manifestos ect. blatantly misleading!
I have concerns about alcohol action , telling me what not to do!
I am a pensioner who likes my little tipple every weekend. It’s what I worked almost 50 years of my life for. You don’t throw out a bag of apples just because there’s one bad apple in it! Lay off and get a life!
I am advertising boomerangs that don’t come back. I am calling them -sticks.
Same with alcohol that isn’t alcohol or the drink you drink when you are not drinking.
Judging by the comments aimed at Varadkar, influential people work in a hostile atmosphere while most live with advertising, false or otherwise.
Money causes more heartache to people’s lives it enslaves people causes more relationship breakdowns leads to children being abused and deprived. Results in more women turning to prostitution more men turning to crime. Has overall effect on societies wellbeing and happiness. Money should be banished.
It’s the naming. If ‘Heineken 0.0′ had a totally different name to standard Heineken, that would be no problem.
Saud
Zero alchol has a small amount of alchol in it just less my friend had it all day at a wedding because she was driving and failed the breathalyser
Honestly. We’d be better off Legislating to Criminalize POSSESSION of Cocaine, Heroin and drugs other than Cannabis within a certain distance of Schools, criminalize all possession and use in and near [specified distance of] Public Parks, Public Playgrounds and on Public Transport.
Not merely alcohol advertising.
Clean up the streets of Dublin, make them safer for all our Children.
Can’t wait to watch this craic though.
This will be hilarious.
Eagerly looking forward to watching the AAI tying themselves in knots trying to argue themselves in and out of, for and against, whether or not the Zero Alcohol and De-alcoholised drinks are or are not the “widest benefits for the greater number of people” given that Zeros – in the applied PublicHealth Policy of Reducing Harm – provide Pregnant mothers with safer drinking; provide Designated Dessie’s and Deirdre’s with safer Consume-and-Drive options thus making the roads safer for Millions; Doctors-on-Call with “just incase” Christmas/Holiday social drinking alternatives; and arguably a safer Social and Recovery Aid for Alcohol Addicts/Dependency (because, obviously we all know by now, “thoughts and prayers” [AA] is NOT a valid or legitimate or Scientifically proven nor Science-based “programme”. It was barely a tolerable band-aid following sufficient development in Psychological and Behavioural Sciences after psychology’s “trip” through the “Psychedelic Therapy” era, since it [AA] was drummed up in ye olde 1930s by “god fearin’ yankee teetotaler Prods”. Which was looong before Psychology had anything of substance to reasonably contribute.
That said, they may have a little teeny tiny point wherein if the Image or Audio is shown to trigger a consistent direct association with the alcoholic version in Implicit Association Tests and/or neuro-response research. AND if the “0.0″/”Zero”/”non-alcoholic” concept is not sufficiently consistently registered and acknowledged by study/research participants, then mayyybe there is an argument for requiring the companies to run seperate and distinct audio and/or visual Advertisement to that currently or recently running for their Alcoholic beverage.
But you can’t prohibit them from using their Brand Name or Logo. That would be truly ‘Hysterical’.
Nor can you reasonably expect to prohibit them from advertising non-alcoholic options in public areas, near schools or during daytime tv and radio.
Indeed, I would argue that the likes of Wine Coolers [West Coast] – which is pathetically less than 5% – should NOT be part of an advertising watershed ban during daytime hours, in particular during horrendously hot Climate Change Summer months.
Perhaps regulations on type of advertising for ‘Zeroes’ and ‘less than 5%s’ during scorching Summers would be better? Such as daytime drinking, outdoors, around the home (1 or 2 cooling drinks on hot weekend over lunch). As opposed to pub and nightlife settings (serial drinking across multiple hours). And/or prohibiting their daytime adverts from being associated with adults at children’s sports events (driving home!).
Mayyybe?
Definitely, obviously, high volume products like Spirits and Wines should be subject to watershed, all year round.
have your say