SIBA attacks beer references in underage drinking report

The Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) has hit out at a report on underage drinking for suggesting beer is a major part of the problem. The...

The Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) has hit out at a report on underage drinking for suggesting beer is a major part of the problem.

The Alcohol Concern report focussed on underage drinking and illustrated the amount being drunk by teenagers by converting the number of units into pints of beer.

But SIBA pointed to a recent analysis of cases referred to the Alcohol Problems Advisory Service, which found, out of 200 cases, only one person admitted beer was the source of their abuse.

In a letter sent to the charity, SIBA trustee Robert Wicks, wrote: "Beer is a low-alcohol product that is not generally implicated in underage drinking nor in abusive drinking habits.

"Why then do you persist in the perpetuation of this myth that beer is part of the problem?"

He added: "In the late 1700s William Wilberforce campaigned to reduce the tax on beer so as to wean the population of London from gin."

Wicks also wondered why the alcohol units had not been converted into pints of white cider.

Tongue-in-cheek he added: "This could lead to the suspicion that the spirits and white cider lobby have infiltrated even the likes of Alcohol Concern."

Wicks also criticised the Daily Telegraph's​ reporting as it focused on beer and cut the report's reference to white wine.

However, overall Wicks described the work as an "excellent analysis of the problems associated with underage drinking".

He added: "As a responsible producer of a low-alcohol product enjoyed almost solely in a regulated on-trade environment, I fully support the work you are doing."

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