A government inquiry has revealed that certain alcohol companies are promoting their drinks at youngsters so that when they do start drinking they are already taken in by a specific brand. Leaked internal documents from marketing departments are showing that market research undertaken using 15-16 year olds are being used when crafting new campaigns, and that companies are making it a priority to target new drinkers who have just turned 18 to create some sense of brand loyalty in early days.
There is a code of practice that alcohol advertisers must abide by says that anything to do with youth culture is out of bounds for alcohol advertisements, however the documents in the Government report show that they are just finding new disguised ways to meet their marketing objectives, which include the recruitment of new drinkers and encouraging higher consumption.
Various groups such as Alcohol Concern want alcohol advertising banned, including sponsorship of sport teams, events and music festivals as they want to reduce the exposure of alcohol to young people as they are worried it could turn them into alcoholics later in life.
There have also been calls to increase the price of alcohol and to remove all pricing promotions offering cheap alcohol in both supermarkets and bars, reducing the ability for youngsters to get hold of alcohol and making it more expensive for people to drink to excess.
The concern of these groups is that if people start drinking from a young age, it may lead to problems later in life, thinking they could end up becoming alcoholics and needing alcohol detox treatment.
Professor Gerald Hastings of the Institute of Social Marketing in Scotland is saying that “alcohol advertisers are drinking in the last chance saloon”. It remains to be seen how right he is, but with his assertion that this is similar to tobacco advertising which eventually did get banned it will be an interesting time for all alcohol marketers.
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