Ireland’s alcohol to warn of health risk

DUBLIN — Ireland plans to impose tobacco-style health warning labels on alcohol as part of a sweeping package of restrictions intended to tackle what a World Health Organization survey ranks as one of the world’s worst rates of binge drinking.

A bill that passed the Irish Parliament’s lower house Wednesday limits alcohol advertising and requires that alcoholic products be separated from retail areas inside shops. It also demands health warnings, including about links to cancer, both on bottles and at the point of sale — even in shops and visitor centers attached to breweries and distilleries, which are major tourist attractions in a country famed for its exports of stout, cider and whiskey.

The measure is the first in Ireland to treat excessive alcohol consumption as a health problem rather than as an issue of licensing or of law and order. It includes a minimum sales price per unit of alcohol and bans the advertising of alcohol in publicly owned parks and at sports events catering mainly to children.

Ireland’s bill will be the first national law to require alcohol manufacturers to display warning labels about specific health risks.

The labels must also specify for the first time the number of calories in a beverage and the total alcohol content in grams as opposed to merely the percentage of alcohol.