The long term harms of alcohol are being minimised in industry funded education, find Madlen Davies and Hristio Boytchev

Universities and schools are being urged to join a growing movement in Ireland and the UK that seeks to drive out the alcohol industry from any influence on public health advice on drinking.

A campaign in Ireland has led to educational programmes funded by the alcohol industry being removed from schools.1 But industry backed groups still provide alcohol education in UK schools, including a theatre group funded by drinks giant Diageo. Universities are also targeted: Drinkaware, a charity funded by major alcohol producers and retailers, venues, and restaurant groups, funds freshers’ education materials, including a free cup to measure alcohol units.

The public health community is calling for an Ireland-style ban on materials by industry associated charities because they normalise drinking, are poorly evaluated, and take up space that otherwise could be filled by truly independent and more critical initiatives.

“It’s extremely problematic because, if I’m a shareholder in a multinational alcohol company, I want to know why money is being spent doing something completely different to the portfolio of the alcohol company, which is production, marketing, and distribution of alcohol. What are they doing in schools? They are protecting those industry profits,” says Katherine Severi, chief executive of the Institute of Alcohol Studies.

“They are delaying the implementation of evidence based policies because they are providing a distraction.”

Materials by industry associated charities should be banned from public health, says Richard Piper, chief executive officer of Alcohol Change UK, a harm reduction charity, because they “don’t treat alcohol as a problematic, difficult substance.”

These resources normalise drinking instead of presenting arguments for not drinking at all, says Piper, and take up space that otherwise could be filled by truly …

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