Menezes: Industry must ‘fight’ for role in policy

The alcoholic drinks industry must fight to participate in legislative discussions about responsible drinking and marketing, according to Ivan Menezes, CEO of Diageo.

Ivan Menezes, CEO of Diageo, has said that the drinks industry must “fight for a seat at the table” in alcohol policy discussions

Speaking at the 38^th Impact Marketing Seminar in New York last week, Menezes said that “industry must have a seat at the table” in the formation of national and international health policies.

“We all agree that some of our consumers misuse alcohol, that this is a real problem and needs to be tackled. So it is the right thing for us to do to more, to engage positively and constructively in the debate – to step up with more meaningful solutions.

“Doing so is good for our business, good for our communities and good for our consumers. And it’s quite simply the right thing to do.”

The involvement of alcoholic drinks groups in discussions surrounding alcohol legislation has been a contentious issue for many years.

In particular, the UK Government recently came under fire by public health professionals when ministers shelved plans for a minimum pricing policy for alcohol, a decision critics claimed was swayed by lobbying drinks industry members.

However, Menezes argued that drinks producers had been “committed to tackling alcohol misuse for decades” and that silencing industry during policy discussions could in fact be harmful to consumers.

“Some public health groups argue that our point of view should not be heard, that we should not be allowed to market our products, that our responsible drinking programs are mere window dressing,” he said.

“In short, they want to prevent us having any role in the formation of national and international public health policies. But the industry must have a seat at the table. We have valuable expertise and a legitimate point of view and need to fight for our right to participate.”

Menezes added that Diageo spends 20% of its broadcast advertising budget on responsible drinking. He also drew on recent figures showing that underage drinking had significantly declined in the US.

“But these trends are not consistent around the world,” he added. “We still have work to do. We need to make sure the trajectory remains positive in these markets and improves elsewhere where we are not seeing the right trends.”