Portman hits out at alcohol marketing slur
The Portman Group has slated the "slurs and innuendos" of a new academic study that suggests alcohol isn't being marketed responsibly.
A report in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) says drinks firms are "pushing the boundaries" of the advertising code.
It examines documents made available during a recent inquiry by MPs on the Health Committee, including client briefs, media schedules, advertising budgets, and market research reports.
It accuses firms of using market research data on 15 and 16 year-olds to guide campaigns — campaigns aren't allowed to appeal to minors.
References were made to the need to recruit new drinkers, such as WKD's bid to attract "new 18 year-olds" and the Carling Weekend billed as the "first choice for the festival virgin".
Other allegations include linking alcohol to social success and encouraging excessive consumption.
Pre-vetted ads
The study, led by Professor Gerard Hastings, argues for regulations being independent of the industries, including ads being "pre-vetted". It also calls for greater scrutiny of the digital media.
"History suggests that alcohol advertisers are, appropriately enough, drinking in the last chance saloon," the study concludes.
BMJ deputy editor Trish Groves also calls for a clampdown on alcohol promotions and backs minimum pricing.
"It is time to put away the rhetoric, popular with the drinks industry, that alcohol misuse is largely an individual problem best avoided and managed through education, counselling, and medical treatment," she writes.
"Instead, the UK needs to embrace the idea that the health and societal costs of alcohol misuse are best prevented through legislation on pricing and marketing."
But Portman chief executive David Poley said: "We are proud of the regulatory system for alcohol in the UK which is admired across the world.
"Gerard Hastings trawled through thousands of pages of internal company marketing documents on behalf of the Health Committee. He failed to find any evidence of actual malpractice. He therefore resorts to slurs and innuendos.
"We wish Gerard Hastings would publish his criticisms in an advertisement. The Advertising Standards Authority could then rightly ban it for being misleading."
