DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
News Release (2007/0132) issued by The Government News Network on 28
May 2007
By the end of 2008
the Government expects all alcoholic drinks labels to include
alcohol unit information, following a ground-breaking agreement
between Government and the drinks industry.
Most people are aware of units as a measure of alcohol
consumption, (86 per cent) and many are aware of the recommended
daily guidelines (69 per cent) but only 13 per cent keep a check
on the number of units they drink. In the UK, 75 per cent of
people support labelling.
Labels with unit information will help people keep an eye on how
much they are drinking, allowing them to monitor their alcohol
intake more easily. The labelling information will be supported by
a major cross-Government campaign on alcohol from 2008, a large
part of which will be about raising unit awareness.
Labels will include:
The drink's unit content and the recommended Government safe
drinking guidelines
UK Health Departments recommend men do not
regularly exceed 3-4 units daily and women 2-3 units
daily
Website - http://www.drinkaware.co.uk
- detailing sensible drinking messages from the charity
Drinkaware
For beer, wine and spirits, unit information will
be given per glass and per bottle
In addition, the Government is also encouraging the alcohol
industry to include sensible drinking information for pregnant
women on labels. Avoid alcohol if pregnant or trying to conceive
is the shortened form of the Government advice announced on 25 May.
Public Health Minister Caroline Flint said;
"This landmark, voluntary agreement will help people
calculate, at a glance, how much they are drinking and whether
they are staying within sensible drinking guidelines. We want to
make it as simple as possible for people to keep an eye on how
much they are drinking and help them take the responsibility for
lessening the impact excess alcohol can have on their health.
"Although most spirits and beer labels for sale in the UK
market and many supermarkets' own brands of beers, wines and
spirits, do carry some information on unit content people can
miscalculate and lose track of how much they are drinking. Unit
information combined with sensible drinking guidelines on the new
labels will make it simpler for people to calculate how many units
they are drinking and make easier for them to stick to the
recommended limits.
"I would like to pay tribute to the drinks industry for
their commitment to promoting a responsible drinking culture. We
will continue to work closely with them on the voluntary
introduction of this new labelling information and with them will
monitor the effect of the agreement on peoples drinking habits."
British Retail Consortium Director General Kevin Hawkins, said:
"This is yet another practical demonstration of
retailers' responsible attitude to selling alcohol. They have
been actively involved in the development of this label and the
concise and simple way it sets out information gives consumers an
easy way to make informed decisions about how they enjoy alcohol.
The BRC and its members will continue to look at
new ways to
promote healthy lifestyles."
Kevin Byrne, Interim Chief Executive of Drinkaware, said:
"We welcome the new labelling on alcoholic drinks. We hope
that by providing consumers with more readily accessible
information it will enable them to make better choices about how
often and how much they drink. This will also reinforce the more
detailed sensible drinking messages on our website: drinkaware.co.uk."
NOTES TO EDITORS:
1. The Drinkaware Trust is an independent charity, funded by the
drinks industry, set up to promote responsible drinking.
Drinkaware.co.uk website contains information on alcohol and
health for consumers.
2. Most drinkers have heard of measuring alcohol consumption in
units (86 per cent) and most are aware of the 'daily
benchmarks' (69 per cent) but only 13 per cent keep a check
on the number of units they drank.
3. Over 7.1 million English people are hazardous or harmful
drinkers, which means that they are drinking more than the
recommended guidelines.
4. A commitment to introduce a voluntary alcohol labelling
agreement was set out in the 2004 Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy.
5. A Memorandum of Understanding sets out the agreement between
the Government and alcohol industry.
6.The French logo for pregnancy and drinking may be used as an
alternative to the words avoid alcohol if pregnant or trying to conceive.
For enquiries please contact the Public Information Line on 0207
210 4850.