BRUSSELS, 25 April 2013: Speaking at the European Alcohol and Health Forum (EAHF), The Brewers of Europe announced progress on implementation of the European Beer Pledge, including a new landmark partnership with the European Transport Safety Council.
Launched one year ago in the presence of the EAHF Chair, the Pledge promised actions to increase consumer knowledge, ensure responsible advertising and directly address alcohol misuse. A new report, assured by KPMG, shows how Europe’s brewers have stepped up, numerically, geographically and in scope and kept their promise that the Pledge would deliver.
In her foreword to the report, MEP Renate Sommer writes, “I welcomed the commitment to report annually on the implementation and I was impressed to read this first report. It shows brewers’ commitment not just to words, but to action!”
The report highlights that progress on the ground owes much to The Brewers of Europe’s commitment to partnering at all levels, including by developing toolkits for the use of brewers and other stakeholders. The new landmark ‘SMART’ partnership between The Brewers of Europe and the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) is an example of this approach.
The three-year Sober Mobility Across Road Transport (SMART) partnership is the first ever joint commitment to the EAHF made by a pan-European business association in collaboration with a leading pan-European NGO. It will deliver guidelines, best practice case studies, dialogue at national level and engage interested stakeholders.
The President of The Brewers of Europe, Mr. Demetrio Carceller welcomed the partnership, stating “This first interim report’s publication is coinciding with the launch by the European Transport Safety Council of a pioneering three-year project against drink driving. The Brewers of Europe is delighted to be partnering with ETSC.” The project builds on The Brewers’ leading role in the EAHF and long tradition of supporting drink driving reduction schemes across Europe.
Carceller added that while the Beer Pledge is a work in progress and that many projects cannot yet be reported upon, the ambitious nature of the Beer Pledge shows that the EU’s multi-stakeholder, voluntary approach is working. “I can commit that implementing the Beer Pledge will remain a major priority for The Brewers of Europe, its member associations and individual brewing companies.”
Media contact
Simon Spillane: +32 2 551 18 10, sws@brewersofeurope.org [1]
About The Brewers of Europe
For more than a half century The Brewers of Europe has been the Brussels-based voice of the European brewing sector towards the European institutions and international organisations. Founded in 1958, it has 28 members, comprising 24 national brewer associations from the EU, Croatia, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey. Among the roughly 3,500 brewers across Europe, the vast majority are small and medium-sized, local and family-run businesses. 2 million jobs are created by the European brewing sector. www.brewersofeurope.org [2]
About the European Beer Pledge
The European Beer Pledge is a voluntary initiative launched in February 2012 by Europe’s brewers to support EU Member States in reducing alcohol related harm. Brewers commit to taking concerted and measurable action to improve consumer information, ensure responsible advertising and address alcohol misuse in line with the expectations of citizens and EU policymakers.
About the Report
The European Beer Pledge should be reported on annually, to allow for a regular monitoring of progress but also further opportunities to identify, evaluate and expand best practice activities. This report constitutes the first year interim report on the European Beer Pledge’s implementation. Focusing on activities supported by members of The Brewers of Europe during and since 2012, this interim report represents a snapshot of initiatives carried out by brewers, through associations, companies and broad coalitions, in line with and contributing to, the implementation of the three pillars of the European Beer Pledge. For full report see:
http://www.brewersofeurope.org/asp/publications/index.asp [3]
About the Sober Mobility Across Road Transport (SMART) partnership
In the framework of the three-year SMART project ETSC will:
Links:
[1] mailto:sws@brewersofeurope.org
[2] http://www.brewersofeurope.org
[3] http://brewersofeurope.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0cd247ef2216ced471fc76b4b&id=8932d35d8c&e=eff9d85ebc