Call for clearer booze labelling

Risks should be spelled out: Study

Voluntary warning labels on alcoholic drinks are not working, a University of Otago study shows. The researchers suggest labelling alcohol-related risks including pregnancy, drinkdriving and cancer should be made standardised and mandatory to make more impact.

The study found a total absence of any labels on some containers, on others there were “pea-size” pregnancy warnings, and there was a lack of detail generally about health risks. Only 19 per cent warned about drink-driving.

The research was done by fourth-year medical students led by Georges Tinawi and Tessa Madeleine Gray at the University of Otago, Wellington, and published in the international journal

The students examined 59 alcoholic beverage containers available in New Zealand.

These included local and imported brands, and featured beers, wines, and ready-todrink beverages (RTDs).

The researchers studied labels on the common beer varieties, and the cheapest wines and RTDs.

The study found substantial variations and inconsistencies between the health warning messages displayed on different alcoholic beverages.

Eighty per cent had pregnancy-related warnings, found mainly on beer, a product which is more commonly marketed to men.

“Only 19 per cent of drinks across the range had any warning regarding drinkdriving, which is concerning given the persistent and significant role of alcohol in fatalities and injuries on New Zealand roads,” said Tinawi, the lead author of the study.

The researchers found that warning labels were markedly smaller than promotional elements on the drinks. About three-quarters had industryled messages such as “Cheers!” or “Enjoy responsibly”.

“These messages are ambiguous from a health perspective and could even encourage further drinking,” Tinawi said.

The students explored characteristics of effective warning labels such as large size, readable text and a clear message.

“They noted that there is a discrepancy between what we know works, and what is actually on the container surface,” Tinawi said.

Said Tessa Grey: “It was clear that marketing material dominates what is on the alcohol container and there is little attention paid to consumers’ right to know the health risks of the product.”

Unlike Canada and the United States, New Zealand warning labels are voluntary.

The researchers believe the size and design of the alcohol warnings does not reflect the evidence that the total health harm from alcohol is similar to that caused by tobacco.

The study’s authors are calling for mandatory standardised labelling in New Zealand to avoid the inconsistencies identified in the study, and to also minimise attempts by the manufacturers to obscure health warnings.