In the Netherlands, there has been a decline in excessive and heavy alcohol consumption for years. Our country is on track to achieve the target of 5 percent alcohol abuse in 2040. In Europe, the Netherlands is one of the six countries with the lowest alcohol abuse scores.
This is the conclusion of the Foundation for Responsible Alcohol Consumption (Stiva) in a so-called position paper. Stiva notes that the agreements of the national prevention agreement are having an effect.
Young people are the focus
At the same time, the foundation wants to continue to work to prevent alcohol abuse. A spearhead is young people under the age of 18. Stiva wants to focus on parcel deliverers, among other things. They should be held legally responsible if they fail to verify age when delivering liquor.
The foundation also wants to give full throttle to encourage parents not to let children under 18 drink alcohol. In addition, Stiva wants to intensify the fight against alcohol in traffic.
Producers and importers of alcoholic beverages are united in Stiva. Branch organization Sprits is one of the participating parties. Sprits director Betty de Boer does not understand the cabinet’s intention to ban alcohol.
Alcohol banned from sports canteens, excise duty increased
Among other things, the cabinet would like to ban the sale of alcohol in sports canteens. Restricting the sale of alcohol in supermarkets and raising excise duties are also being considered.
According to De Boer, various measures have recently been offered to combat alcohol abuse among young people. These include, for example, intensifying the NIX 18 campaign, removing the fun factor from alcohol marketing in supermarkets and round table discussions about drinking chains.
Against this background, De Boer calls the cabinet’s intentions incomprehensible and patronising. She points out that many measures have the opposite effect. “People who can no longer drink in the sports canteen will do so elsewhere. That means empty sports canteens, while canteen turnover is often of great importance to associations and sports halls.”
Industry fights alcohol abuse
An increase in excise duty will lead to people buying alcohol abroad. “Look at Belgium. The excise duty was increased there, but the tax revenue fell. The Belgians bought their drinks en masse in Luxembourg.”
In De Boer’s view, the sector is doing everything it can to prevent alcohol abuse. “We take our responsibility. You really wonder where this intention of the cabinet comes from. It is reminiscent of Prohibition in America. And what happened there? Exactly, people started to smoke alcohol illegally.”