Concern over SAB’s message to females

‘She loves beer’ campaign: empowering or endangering women?

THE SOUTHERN African Alcohol Policy Alliance (Saapa) has expressed outrage at SAB’s new ad campaign targeting female beer drinkers and has labelled it as “concerning”. “Our biggest concern is that they are targeting young women to drink beers,” Saapa spokesperson Aadielah Maker said.

“So it is concerning that SAB launched the ‘She loves beer’ campaign, which clearly targets young women of child-bearing age,” Maker said in relation to the problem of foetal alcohol syndrome.

The campaign was created in August for Women’s Month. The idea behind it was to highlight woman brewers within the company. In a video released on their website it shows three female employees from their Alrode Brewery being interviewed. They provided various views on being a female in a male-dominated industry.

Maker acknowledged that the campaign draws a narrative of the non-recognition of women’s involvement in brewing and gender equality.

“This campaign, however, fudges gender equality with messages on how liberating alcohol consumption is and how it is essential to socialising without providing any facts on how alcohol can affect women’s health and that of their unborn babies,” Marker said.

But SAB disagrees and said the campaign profiles their female employees and the great work they are doing.

“It in no way seeks to target women of child-bearing age, as alleged by Saapa. SAB will continue to celebrate the lives and work of its employees across the spectrum, as we always have done,” director of communications: AB InBev Africa and SAB, Robyn Chalmers, said.

Chalmers also said that SAB has for many years supported the Foundation for Alcohol Related Research (Farr) which works with Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

“Just this month, SAB sponsored one of four Early Childhood Development Centres which Farr is using for research and training on FASD awareness and prevention. SAB applauds the work done by Farr and is committed to supporting these and other initiatives to address the harm caused by the misuse of alcohol,” Chalmers said.

In August, the Cape Argus reported that the anti-alcohol group Saapa, along with the Public Health Association of South Africa and Schools of Public Health strongly condemned SAB’s partnership with Stop Hunger Now SA. The collaboration plans to combat the hunger crisis facing the continent.

The Beers for Africa packs feature different types of beer from different African countries. With every pack that is sold, Stop Hunger Now SA will receive money to provide three students with a meal. Following a public outcry, however, SAB has decided to withdraw their marketing of the “Beers For Africa” campaign.