Latest News
“ANU Research shows more Australians drinking less during covid-19”
Missing from the ANU media release, but found buried in the report[1] is a very different story about Australians drinking during the coronavirus crisis. Mr Andrew Wilsmore, Chief Executive Officer for Alcohol Beverages Australia said today “The ANU survey results show that more Australians have...
Statement on ADF “You Haven’t Been Drinking Alone” advertisement
Parents know you reward good behaviour, so it is disappointing this campaign focuses on the negative when Australians have earnt a pat on the back for overwhelmingly drinking in moderation during the coronavirus crisis. Beer, wine and spirit producers have reported April as their worst trading...
Worst month on record for Australian beer, wine, spirits producers: ABA covid report
Australia’s largest beer, cider, wine and spirit producers are reporting dramatic volume declines due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This has clearly translated into Australians drinking less overall, and the sad reality of almost half a million jobs lost in hospitality and $8.5 billion in lost...
“Aussies drinking less in Isolation”
MEDIA RELEASE 21 May 2020 “Aussies drinking less in Isolation” CONTRARY to alarmist claims, it’s now official... Australians are drinking less in isolation. Mr Andrew Wilsmore, Chief Executive Officer of Alcohol Beverages Australia, said today “A spate of dubious polls have captured headlines...
Majority of Australians drinking the same or less during COVID-19
New, official data1 from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today confirms the vast majority (85.6%) of Australians are drinking responsibly during the pandemic shutdown – either unchanged behaviour or drinking less during COVID-19. Mr Andrew Wilsmore, Chief Executive Officer of Alcohol...
Minimal Effort Gone into Review of Minimum Pricing
MEDIA RELEASE - EMBARGOED: 6am, 29 April 2020 The report released today titled “Investigating the introduction of the alcohol minimum unit price in the Northern Territory” has incorrectly assumed long term trends of falling consumption and harms are wholly attributable to the introduction of a...
Minimum Unit Pricing experiment has led to an increase in alcohol consumption and left Territorians millions of dollars out of pocket
A report from Frontier Economics exploring Northern Territorians alcohol consumption after the introduction of a $1.30 minimum price on alcoholic beverages has seen Territorians pay more for their favourite drinks, while also leading to a 1.2% increase in overall per capita consumption. Popular 2L...
Overall alcohol consumption is down
Data from alcohol producers and recent Commonwealth Bank credit card analysis show that overall alcohol consumption in Australia is lower than it was at the same time last year due to pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants closing. This refutes research put out today conducted by YouGov that was...
Drinks Industry and Governments provide a helping hand
A number of Governments have helped throw a lifeline to hospitality and tourism workers by allowing on-premises to provide a take-away service and from the raft of business support measures – such as payroll, rent, liquor licencing fees and other forms of relief. Beer, Wine, and Spirits producers...
Industry welcomes review of Pregnancy Warning Label
The decision by Food Forum Ministers to review the proposed pregnancy warning label designed by Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) has been welcomed by the industry. “Our industry has made it very clear that we support mandatory labelling to help reduce FASD, however we need a...
Bureaucrats ignore 10 years of success to design their own label at a cost to consumers of $400million*
Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ)’s decision to design their own pregnancy warning label is short-sighted and will see costs passed to the consumer for very little health gain. “Our industry has made it very clear to FSANZ that we support making the existing voluntary pregnancy...
Minimum Unit Pricing hurts the hip pockets of all Australians
All Australian consumers will pay more for alcohol if Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) is implemented. “It’s a blunt instrument that forces the majority of responsible drinkers to pay more and takes a proportionally greater amount from those on lower incomes,” says Mr Andrew Wilsmore CEO of Alcohol...
Drinking guidelines made complicated for the average Australian
Most Australians drink alcohol for enjoyment, relaxation and sociability, and do so responsibly. The NHMRC drinking guidelines which help determine harmful levels of consumption are extremely important and must have credibility within both the health community and the public. Mr Andrew Wilsmore,...
National Alcohol Strategy
Australians would view it as our duty to fight the harmful use of alcohol – as an industry, as producers, as retailers, and as individuals – to help improve the health of Australians and reduce the risk of alcohol-related harms and Non-Communicable Diseases. The release of the National Alcohol...
Binge Drinking improves but perceptions yet to follow
Latest data from the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD) confirms Australia is increasingly a country of moderate drinkers, with heavy episodic drinking at its lowest level since 2001. Despite the 13.5% fall in the number of Australians binge-drinking, only 10% of Australians...
A welcome boost to Sydney’s night-time economy
The Joint Select Committee’s recommendation to repeal Sydney’s lockout laws is great news for the night-time economy and combined with other measures will help restore the vibrancy, fun, international reputation and economic prosperity to the city. Andrew Wilsmore, CEO of Alcohol Beverages...
Alcohol Industry leads responsible marketing
Over the past 50 years alcohol advertising has increased in volume and expanded its reach, especially in the past 10-15 years through digital and online media. Industry has been at the forefront of innovations to ensure controls above-the-line are translated online. Andrew Wilsmore, CEO of...
Australians’ drinking overall still at 50-year lows
The Australian Bureau of Statistics released data today shows that while alcohol consumption per capita is steady, Australians are still drinking at 50-year lows. “It’s really important that we understand the bigger picture at play here” says Andrew Wilsmore, CEO of Alcohol Beverages Australia. ...
Safety AND Diversity – a solution to Sydney’s lockout laws
Today Alcohol Beverages Australia presented to the Joint Select Committee on Sydney’s night time economy and offered workable solutions to ensure public safety while relaxing the law to restore Sydney’s reputation as an exciting international city. “ABA was delighted to contribute to this select...
National Alcohol Strategy
Alcohol Beverages Australia stands by our comments made two weeks ago on the National Alcohol Strategy. We participated in an open and transparent consultation process as part of providing input to the development of public policy led and decided on by Government. We agree alcohol harm should be...