Alcohol lobby takes on WHO

UN health agency is seeking stricter rules

- EMMA RUMNEY JENNIFER RIGBY

The Belgian beer industry, Mexico's tequila makers and Heineken all lobbied governments this summer to resist a push by the UN’s health agency to introduce tougher rules targeting alcohol, letters and an email reviewed by Reuters show.

The previously unreported efforts reflect how the $1 trillion global drinks industry is taking on the World Health Organization over its hardening stance that there is no risk-free level of drinking. That position is disputed by the industry.

Also, as cash-strapped and increasingly health-conscious consumers cut back on alcohol, dealing a blow to companies’ profits, the standoff reveals how the sector is ramping up its efforts to head off further threats.

The WHO and other health authorities say drinking, sometimes even in small amounts, is linked to higher risks of certain cancers and other diseases.

Dag Rekve, the WHO's technical policy officer, told Reuters that at the population level, these health harms were “consistent and well documented”.

But alcohol makers say the science is more complicated and shows drinking in moderation is low-risk. Julian Braithwaite, CEO of the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD), told Reuters the industry aims to “take back control of the alcohol debate”.

To that end, IARD’s members, which include leading brewers and spirit makers, have increased the organisation's funding to have it play a more active role in alcohol-related science debates and counter the message coming from health bodies.

WATERED-DOWN AGREEMENT

The current flashpoint in that battle is a new UN-backed agreement, due for adoption by countries on Thursday, that sets targets for tackling noncommunicable diseases, some of them linked to alcohol.