IARD Report Shows Leading Beer, Wine and Spirits Producers Have Reached Hundreds of Millions of People Across the Globe in Their Mission to Combat Harmful Drinking

LONDON, September 10, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The 11 companies behind some of the world's most popular beer, wine, and spirits brands have forged new and innovative partnerships across sectors through their Producers' Commitments.

Achievements include:

• Delivering an average of 347 drink driving prevention programs per year between 2014 and 2017
• Reaching over 6 million underage individuals via face-to-face interactions between 2015 and 2017 with messages against underage drinking
• Specifying that advertising agencies must comply with our responsible alcohol advertising codes in 97% of our contracts with them in 2017
• The number of local responsible retailing initiatives increased by 66% between 2014 and 2017
• An average of 224 local responsible retailing initiatives were operating, per year, between 2014 and 2017

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In 2012, the leading beer, wine, and spirits producers that compromise the membership of International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD) committed to work together to combat harmful drinking and set new responsible standards for their wider industry.

The full report, out today, details the progress made over the five years and demonstrates what can be achieved when public, private, and civil sectors come together to tackle challenges including the harmful use of alcohol, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), and the targets laid out within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

We have achieved a great deal working together and with others, and yet there is still so much more we can do. We're seeing positive change in many parts of the world, in underage drinking, drinking to excess, and drinking and driving. But, we want to see positive change in every part of the world.

IARD CEO Chair and Chief Executive of Diageo Ivan Menezes commented "Having reached the end of our five years we can reflect proudly on the tangible difference we have already made, as well as the work we need to do in the future.

It's our duty to fight the harmful use of alcohol to help improve global health as well as reduce the risk of noncommunicable diseases.

Through our Producers' Commitments, we have laid strong foundations for the work ahead, but recognize there is a lot more to do. But we cannot act alone. Innovative partnerships with retailers, government departments, health agencies and nongovernmental organizations have been instrumental to the progress we have made."

IARD's CEO and President Henry Ashworth stated that "the Producers' Commitments demonstrate the determination of these leading global producers to be catalysts of change, and highlight the impact they can have by working with governments and NGOs.

A whole-of-society approach is critical in delivering sustainable development locally, nationally, and globally and our collective efforts can go much further if we move from having a shared agenda to developing shared solutions. Together we can achieve change; reducing the harmful use of alcohol and accelerating progress towards the SDGs."

Key achievements of the Producers Commitments include:   

Reducing underage drinking  

• 6 million underage people reached with face-to-face interactions between 2015 and 2017
• 3 million influencers reached via face-to-face interactions between 2015 and 2017
• Over half a billion people (546 million) reached between 2014 and 2017 through media and social channels 

Reducing drinking and driving   

• Members operated an average of 347 drink-driving prevention programs per year between 2014 and 2017
• Drink-driving programs and pilots were operating in 76% of countries where members were commercially active in 2017

Strengthening marketing codes of practice   

• 97% of members contracts with advertising agencies in 2017 specified that they had to comply with our responsible advertising codes
• Non-industry participation was established in existing self-regulatory processes in 53 countries of commercial activity, on average, between 2014 and 2017

Providing consumer information and responsible product innovation  

• Of the four signatories reporting by volume, 85% of products carried symbols or words warning against harmful drinking in 2017
• Of the seven signatories reporting by brands, 59% of products carried symbols or words warning against harmful drinking in 2017

Working with retailers   

• An average of 224 local responsible retailing initiatives were operating per year between 2014 - 2017
• 66% increase in the number of local responsible retailing initiatives between 2014 - 2017

Examples of initiatives highlighted within the report include:  

Action against drink driving in Australia and New Zealand  
DrinkWise Australia runs innovative drink driving prevention campaigns and is funded by Australian alcohol producers. It partnered with ride-sharing service Uber in 2017 to discourage racing fans from drink driving by operating the "DrinkWise UberZONE" during the Melbourne Cup Carnival, which provided a safe and reliable access point for eventgoers to enter and leave the race course. The UberZONE promoted DrinkWise Australia and Uber's messages about safe journeys and responsible alcohol consumption, with free water for attendees while they waited in comfort for their Uber ride home.

Responsible alcohol marketing policies in Cambodia  
The Asia Pacific International Wine and Spirits Alliance (APIWSA), together with the Minister of Information Khieu Kanharith, signed the "Cambodia Responsible Alcohol Marketing and Communication Code of Conduct" in February 2017. The code sets out the rules that apply to alcohol marketing and represents a set of common standards supported by major international alcohol producers, such as statements on alcohol strength, harmful drinking, and not targeting those under 18 years old.

Improving breath testing practice in Namibia  
We worked with the Self-Regulating Alcohol Industry Forum (SAIF) to implement the "Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol" program, between 2015 and 2017, which aimed to help reduce drink driving through public educational messages and through improved enforcement regulations and detection methods.

Between August 1, 2017 and January 31, 2018, traffic officers tested over 153,000 drivers and found that 1% tested positive for alcohol consumption. The police's high-visibility enforcement deterred drivers from drinking, and the percentage of all drivers arrested for driving while intoxicated fell from 6.8% in 2016 to 0.5% in 2017.

Latvia: Would you sell alcohol to your child?  
The Latvian Alcohol Industry Association (LANA) launched awareness campaigns and test-purchasing operations using underage volunteers in 2016 and 2017. LANA partnered with the Association of Hotels and Restaurants of Latvia (AHRL), Latvian Traders Association, the Latvian Food Retailers' Association (LPTA), and the Latvian Medical Association, to carry out more than 40 engagements with retailers. The initiative asked sales staff to imagine what the consequences would be selling alcohol to their own child and reminded them to ask for ID.

In 2017, approximately 1,250 retail cash registers displayed the campaign materials, and around 400 hotels, cafes, and restaurants joined the initiative. The campaign was featured on TV, radio, and the internet, potentially reaching approximately 2 million people. After the campaign, 90% of boys and just over 65% of girls were stopped from buying alcohol without showing ID.

The 11 signatories to the Beer, Wine and Spirits Producers' Commitments to Reduce Harmful Drinking are Anheuser-Busch InBev, Asahi Group Holdings, Bacardi, Beam Suntory, Brown-Forman Corporation, Carlsberg, Diageo, HEINEKEN, Kirin Holdings Company, Molson Coors, and Pernod Ricard.

The Producers' Commitments:

• Reducing underage drinking
• Strengthening & expanding marketing codes of practice
• Providing consumer information & responsible product innovation
• Reducing drinking and driving
• Enlisting the support of retailers to reduce harmful drinking 

The International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to addressing harmful drinking worldwide and promoting responsible drinking, among those who choose to drink. IARD is supported by its member companies from all sectors of the regulated alcohol industry - beer, wine, and spirits - in their common purpose of being part of the solution to reducing the harmful use of alcohol.

For more information on our membership and what we do, please visit http://www.producerscommitments.org