SAKE VIVA!

The Japanese campaign called the nationwide to increase alcohol drinking as the SAKE VIVA campaign.

- Sunil S Chiplunkar

Japan made waves in Aug 2022 when the Japanese government launched a nationwide campaign and competition encouraging youngsters to drink more alcohol. This is remarkable news, particularly in India, where right from the days of Mahatma Gandhi; alcohol is taboo. Alcohol after all is noted to cause deleterious effects; not only on physical health but also alcohol addiction causes social problems for the addict. Alcohol or Arukuro in Japanese is a significant tax generator for Japanese government. 'Sake' is also a Japanese term for any alcoholic drink. The Japanese called the nationwide campaign to increase alcohol drinking as the SAKE VIVA campaign.

Sake Viva campaign

'Long live alcoholic drinks': this is essentially what the phrase 'sake viva' means. The Japanese national tax agency has invited Japanese people aged 20 years to 39 years, to submit ideas on how to increase the appeal of alcoholic beverages among the youth and public. As such, due to Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown alcoholic beverage consumption among Japanese has gone down. Reacting to this campaign, the health ministry of Japan hoped that the campaign will insist on people to consume only "proper amounts of alcohol".

WHO and alcohol consumption