Drinks businesses have warned that falling profits and rising taxes will jeopardise their ability to fund future responsible-drinking campaigns.
The news comes as the £100m industry-funded 'Why let good times go bad?' campaign enters its second phase this week.
The campaign, paid for by 45 retailers and suppliers, was launched in July with a series of TV ads aimed at 18-to-24-year olds.
From this month, the initiative, which has been co-ordinated by industry charity Drinkaware, will run adverts in half the UK's phone boxes and print messages on 13 million branded cans and bottles. Some of the companies involved claimed they would not be able to fund future campaigns to the same level.
"With tax increases and new legislation, there could come a point where it is simply not feasible for suppliers to continue supporting multimillion pound campaigns as we don't have access to an endless pot of resources," said one supplier. "The industry could certainly struggle to find the necessary cash.
"However, it's imperative that suppliers continue to support this campaign and others, with the goal of eventually stopping further government legislation and tax rises."
The Wine & Spirit Trade Association echoed this view. "This fully funded scheme is good for the industry and good for anyone concerned about encouraging responsible drinking," said spokesman Gavin Partington. "But in tough economic times, it's already difficult to balance running a business effectively and funding campaigns like this.
"Businesses cannot soak up cost and tax increases forever, and it would be a shame if legislative interventions actually had a negative impact on the industry's ability to run campaigns such as this."
Health Secretary Andy Burnham this week praised the drinks industry's commitment to responsible drinking. "The alcohol industry has a big responsibility to tackle excessive drinking and there are many things we can do by working together to promote a healthy attitude to alcohol," he said.
The news comes as the £100m industry-funded 'Why let good times go bad?' campaign enters its second phase this week.
The campaign, paid for by 45 retailers and suppliers, was launched in July with a series of TV ads aimed at 18-to-24-year olds.
From this month, the initiative, which has been co-ordinated by industry charity Drinkaware, will run adverts in half the UK's phone boxes and print messages on 13 million branded cans and bottles. Some of the companies involved claimed they would not be able to fund future campaigns to the same level.
"With tax increases and new legislation, there could come a point where it is simply not feasible for suppliers to continue supporting multimillion pound campaigns as we don't have access to an endless pot of resources," said one supplier. "The industry could certainly struggle to find the necessary cash.
"However, it's imperative that suppliers continue to support this campaign and others, with the goal of eventually stopping further government legislation and tax rises."
The Wine & Spirit Trade Association echoed this view. "This fully funded scheme is good for the industry and good for anyone concerned about encouraging responsible drinking," said spokesman Gavin Partington. "But in tough economic times, it's already difficult to balance running a business effectively and funding campaigns like this.
"Businesses cannot soak up cost and tax increases forever, and it would be a shame if legislative interventions actually had a negative impact on the industry's ability to run campaigns such as this."
Health Secretary Andy Burnham this week praised the drinks industry's commitment to responsible drinking. "The alcohol industry has a big responsibility to tackle excessive drinking and there are many things we can do by working together to promote a healthy attitude to alcohol," he said.
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