In April 2016, EUCAM filed a complaint against a radio-commercial from the supermarket chain “Jumbo” for alcoholic drinks, that has been broadcasted multiple times at NPO Radio 1 between 06:00 and 21:00. The Dutch Media Authority warned this radio channel for their breach of the Dutch Media Law. The Dutch Media Wet 2008 (Media Law) stipulates that … Read More →
In 2017, the European marketing Directive will be revised – the only European legislation in the area of alcohol marketing. EUCAM (European Centre for Monitoring Alcohol Marketing) and the Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy STAP believe that the Dutch government has to grasp this once in a decade opportunity. EUCAM and STAP believe that the Dutch … Read More →
Beer is too cheap and needs a minimum price, according to the Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy STAP. Director Wim van Dalen told RTL Nieuws on Friday that supermarket are selling beers for ‘ridiculous prices’ such as a crate for less than € 5, or 20 cents a bottle. He said introducing a minimum price could … Read More →
In recent years the Dutch government gave a € 6.6 million grant to Heineken for so-called development aid in Africa. Prime Minister Rutte praised Heineken in September 2015 during a speech to the UN, because of the purchase of beer barley from local farmers in Africa.
Research journalists of the Dutch television-program Zembla studied the impact of the € 1.3 million grant Heineken received from the Dutch government for the acquisition of two state breweries in Ethiopia.
Who benefited? The advantage for Heineken is obvious: net sales rose sharply and the company now controls 30% of the Ethiopian beer market. But that does not apply to the Ethiopian government: Heineken currently pays – despite increased sales – less income tax than before the acquisition in 2011. In addition, Heineken also paid much less wage tax. That’s because since the acquisition of the two breweries, 699 Ethiopians were fired by Heineken.
The impact on poverty in the country and on the beer barley farmers who participate is unclear. The latter have a higher yield and a better price, but may only supply the breweries of Heineken. An expert of the IMF judges the results of the Dutch policy as a lose-lose-win situation. A loss for the Ethiopian treasury, a loss for the personnel of the breweries and a win for Heineken.
Source: Zembla.vara.nl via our colleagues at STAP the Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy.
Authors: Craig S. Ross, Avalon de Bruijn and David Jernigan Title: Do time restrictions on alcohol advertising reduce youth exposure? Journal: Journal of Public Affairs Volume 13, Issue 1, pages 123–129, February 2013 Abstract: Regulators may attempt to reduce youth exposure to alcohol advertising by restricting times during which alcohol ads may be aired on … Read More →
An analysis of the top ten sport clubs of the five most popular sports in the Netherlands showed that more than half were sponsored by alcohol producers. This fact sheet summarizes the results of research conducted in the AMMIE project. The full fact sheet can be downloaded and read here