09/10/2008

Alcohol Industry In 'Crisis'

An alcohol industry lobby group has revealed the alcohol industry is in "crisis" following a significant drop in consumption this year.

The Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI) released figures on Thursday that its analysis showed alcohol sales had fallen 9% since January, down 22% in the month of September alone compared to the same month in 2007.

The September figures show purchases of beer were most affected, declining by 35% for the month compared to September 2007 and by 11% in the year to date.

Michael Patten, Chairman of DIGI said: "I believe that one of the factors is that the very high proportion of “young adults” [late teens, early twenties] is now maturing and as they get older they will typically consume less alcohol than they did previously.”

Mr Patten went on to say they needed to urgently stem the flow and protect jobs, and that the group will be "seeking a meeting with the government to discuss the crisis as soon as possible."

The DIGI chairman went on to say that in the meantime it is imperative the situation is not made worse in next week’s budget and warned against a tax rise on alcohol, saying: "there is clearly no crock of gold to be found in today’s drinks industry."

(DW/KMcA)


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