Ireland has implemented minimum unit pricing (MUP) for alcohol, effective 4 January, in a bid to prevent the sale of strong alcohol at low prices.
The legislation will impact the prices of alcoholic beverages in supermarkets and off-licences, with the minimum price for 'one standard drink' standing at €1.
One standard drink in Ireland contains 10 grams of alcohol.
The Irish government signed off the legislation in May of last year to reduce alcohol abuse and health spending.
New Pricing
As per the new law, a 12.5% bottle of wine cannot be sold for less than €7.40 from 4 January 2022 as it contains 7.4 standard drinks.
The price of a 700ml bottle of gin would increase to at least €22.09, up from €14, while a 500ml can of lager would cost a minimum of €1.70.
In 2019, every person in Ireland aged 15 and over drank 10.8 litres of pure alcohol on an average a year, or the equivalent of either 40 bottles of vodka, 113 bottles of wine, or 436 pints of beer, according to the HSE.
Minimum Unit Pricing
Research by the Sheffield Alcohol Research Group found that when minimum unit pricing (MUP) on alcohol is introduced in Ireland, alcohol consumption is expected to reduce by almost 9% overall.
The HSE also noted that alcohol purchases in Scotland reduced by 7.6% in 2019 – a year after the introduction of minimum unit pricing (MUP). It was the lowest level of alcohol sales since records began in the early 1990s.
Read More: Why Are Young People Drinking Less Than Their Parents’ Generation Did?
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Drinks news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.