thomas karlsson nordic alcohol policy in what form · nordic alcohol policy – in what form does...

Thomas Karlsson

”Nordic alcohol policy – in what form does it exist?”

Nordic alcohol policy –

in what form does it exist?

Thomas Karlsson

Researcher

Department of Alcohol, Drugs and Addiction

20/10/2011 Nordic alcohol policy… / Thomas Karlsson

• Alcohol consumption in the Nordic countries.

• Nordic alcohol policy. Background, development and current status.

• Alcohol policy goes international. Recent developments.

• Does Nordic alcohol policy exist? – Conclusions

20/10/2011 3/21 Nordic alcohol policy… / Thomas Karlsson

Contents:

• In most of Europe alcohol consumption has been unchanged or on the decrease since the mid-1970s. In Iceland, Norway and Finland, however, consumption has been going up and in Sweden and Denmark alcohol consumption was roughly at the same level in 2010 as in the middle of the 1970s.


Alcohol consumption in the Nordic countries 1961-2009

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Denmark Finland Norway Sweden Iceland

Finland

Iceland

Norway

Sweden

Denmark

• The consumption of spirits was growing in the 1960s and

early 1970s in all Nordic countries until it levelled out or

took a downturn in the mid-1970s. The present

consumption of spirits is clearly lower than in the middle of

the 1970s, and in Sweden even lower than in the early

1960s.

• Wine consumption on the other hand has increased in all

Nordic countries during the past 50 years.

• It seems also that beer consumption has grown, although

the trends have not been uniform all the countries.


Alcohol consumption by beverage type

• On the European scale, alcohol consumption in Finland and Denmark is on the

upper-middle level. The Finns drink alcohol more than the Italians and Greeks and

almost as much as the French. The highest consumption in Europe can be found in

countries like the Czech Republic, Hungary and Ireland. Iceland and Norway are

among the countries with the lowest alcohol consumption in Europe.

20.10.2011 6/21

Alcohol consumption in the Nordic countries 2010, in 100 % alcohol

8.1 8.46.1 5.3 5.4

1.9 0.9

1.61.3 0.5

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Finland Denmark Sweden Norway IcelandRecorded Unrecorded

10.09.3

7.76.7

5.9

Litres per capita

Nordic alcohol policy… / Thomas Karlsson

Alcohol consumption in the Nordic countries, 2010

• Total alcohol consumption is an excellent indicator

for the level of alcohol-related harms in a society.

• Alcohol consumption figures and especially changes in them reflects fairly well general and specific societal and political changes.

• Therefore consumption data works both as an indicator on ongoing changes and situation as well as a predictor of future alcohol-related harm.


Why is the level of alcohol consumption important and interesting from a research point of view?






Contents:

• Traditionally alcohol policy in the Nordic countries, with the exception of Denmark, has rested on three main pillars, regarded as the cornerstones of Nordic alcohol policy.

• These are: 1) restrictions on private profit interest in the alcohol

business, 2) restrictions on the physical availability of alcoholic

beverages, and 3) restrictions on the economic availability of alcoholic

beverages by means of high taxation.


Nordic alcohol policy (1/2)

• During the past few decades, however, these pillars have gradually began to crumble.

• An important factor behind this chain of events has been the Europeanization process that in the 1990s culminated in the EU membership of Finland and Sweden and the EEA membership of Iceland and Norway.

• The principles of free movement of goods and unhindered competition have enabled private profit seeking in alcohol trade (Pillar 1), increased physical availability of alcohol (Pillar 2) and made it more difficult for countries to pursuit an alcohol policy based on high taxation (Pillar 3).


Nordic alcohol policy (2/2)

11/21

What has happened with the three pillars?

Pillar 1 (restrictions on private profit interest):

• The comprehensive alcohol monopolies were dismantled in the

mid-1990s. Retail sales monopolies do, however, still exist.

• The Nordic alcohol industry has become more international.

Domestic producers have been bought by international economic

operators, like: Carlsberg, Heineken, Brown-Forman, Pernod

Ricard, etc.

• Retail sales of farm wine was allowed in Finland 1995, and there

have been plans on even allowing sales of liqueurs. In Norway and

Sweden there have been demands on allowing farm wine sales

and beer sales directly from microbreweries. If allowed this could

jeopardize the existence of the retail alcohol monopolies.


12/21


Pillar 2 (restrictions on the physical availability):

• The physical availability of alcoholic beverages has been eased,

the number of on- and off-premises increased and opening hours

prolonged. The supply of different types of alcoholic beverages is

greater than before.

• Quotas for travelers' alcohol imports within EU were abolished in

2004. This has increased the possibility to import large quantities

of alcoholic beverages from other EU countries where alcohol is

much cheaper.

• For instance, Swedes buy alcohol from Germany, Denmark and

the Baltic countries, whereas Danes buy alcohol from Germany,

Norwegians from Sweden, and Finns mainly from Estonia.


13/21

Main cross-border trade routes in the Nordic countries


14/21


Pillar 3 (restrictions on the economic availability):

• In the Nordic countries alcoholic beverages are still heavily taxed

from a European perspective.

• Excise duties for alcoholic beverages have, however, been

lowered (especially in Finland in 2004 and Denmark in 2003) and

alcoholic beverages, measured in real terms, are cheaper now

than a decade ago.

• After the large Finnish tax reductions in 2004, Finland has

increased their excise duties on alcohol three times in 2008 and

2009. Also Norway and Sweden have made small alterations, both

increases and decreases, to their alcohol excise duties during the

previous years.


15/21

Alcohol excise duties in some European countries, 1 Jan, 2010

* Non EU-country


16/21

Special features of the Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish alcohol programmes


Finland Norway Sweden Adopted by: Government

Objective: Reduction of total

consumption and minimisation

of harm

At focus:

children and youth

situational sobriety

risk or heavy use of alcohol

networking, partnership

agreements, local

implementation of action

Funding level: Satisfactory

Adopted by: Parliament


consumption and minimisation of

harm

At focus:

children and youth


services and early

intervention

information and education

co-ordination of activities

international co-operation

Funding level: Good

Adopted by: Parliament


consumption and minimisation

of harm

At focus:

children and youth


services

risk groups

building of a new system,

local prevention efforts

Funding level: Excellent






Contents:

18/21

Alcohol policy goes international (1/2)

• While a restrictive alcohol policy has lost some of its justification in

the Nordic countries, alcohol issues have become more prominent

on the international level. The most significant achievements the

Nordic countries have contributed to during the last years on the

international arena are:

1. The Commission’s Communication on an EU Strategy to Support

Member States in Reducing Alcohol-Related Harm (COM (2006)

625) – the EU’s first “alcohol strategy”, and

2. a Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol, which

was passed by the World Health Assembly, on the 20th of May,

2010. The strategy highlights the effectiveness of focusing on

evidence-based policies regarding pricing, availability and

marketing of alcoholic beverages.


19/21

Alcohol policy goes international (2/2)

1. EU’s alcohol strategy: Finland and especially Sweden had a

central role in the preparation and approval of the EU’s alcohol

strategy in 2006. Both countries have also lifted alcohol policy

issues on the political agenda during their presidencies in the EU.

2. WHO’s Global alcohol strategy: It was partly due to the influence

of the Nordic countries (especially Sweden and Norway) that the

WHO passed a resolution on alcohol in 2005 (A58/26). This was

followed by a strategy for the reduction of the harmful use of

alcohol (A61/13) in 2008 and the whole process culminated in the

Global alcohol strategy in May 2010.

The Nordic countries have also been successful in activating

other countries in alcohol issues. A good example of this is the fact

that the initiator of the 2008 resolution was the Republic of

Rwanda, much because of Sweden’s active persuasions.


20/21

Does Nordic alcohol policy exist? – Conclusions (1/3)

• The operational preconditions for an independently

directed “Nordic alcohol policy” have been considerably

weakened since the mid-1990s. In this process, the

European integration has played a central role.

• The liberalizations that have taken place in Nordic

alcohol policy in recent decades have resulted in a

general increase in total alcohol consumption and

related harmful effects.

• The basis on which Nordic alcohol policy was built on

(the three pillars) stays, however, still its ground.


21/21


• While national alcohol policy has lost some of its

justification in the Nordic countries, alcohol issues have

become more prominent on the international level.

• One could describe it as a shift from national politics

towards international policy making and diplomacy.

• As the recent demand of increased sales rights to farm

wines and liqueurs shows, the greatest risks towards

Nordic alcohol policy in the future are not anymore

posed by the EU, but instead by the actions of domestic

operators as well as by increased lobbying by the

international drinks industry.


22/21


• A common Nordic front in alcohol issues towards the EU

could be a realistic strategy in the future instead of individual

countries alone trying to defend their alcohol policies.

• We should also not disregard the three cornerstones of

Nordic alcohol policy, as they still represent the most

effective weapons against alcohol-related harm.

• The three recent alcohol tax raises in Finland as well as the

discussion on selling medium beer only in monopoly stores

serves as a good reminder that it is still possible to pursue

an alcohol policy based on high taxation and restricted

physical availability of alcohol.


thomas karlsson nordic alcohol policy in what form · nordic alcohol policy – in what form does...

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