Allied Domecq is the first major spirits supplier to put a responsible drinking message on bottles.

It is to join the growing push for promotion of sensible drinking, after the brewers Scottish Courage and Coors both included a warning on their products.
New labels on Allied Domecq brands will carry information about daily recommended amounts for men and woman, as well as how many units are in the bottle.

They will also carry a ‘Don’t drink and drive’ warning along with the Portman Group’s Drinkaware web site address.
One third of the bottles’ back label will be taken up with the new information. Teacher’s,
Harvey’s Bristol Cream and Malibu will be the first Allied Domecq brands to carry the message this month.
They will be followed by the rest of its portfolio, such as Tia
Maria and Cockburn’s, in September, after inventory has been cleared. “We believe that our announcement today represents another step in the process that will lead to consumers regarding drinking to excess and antisocial behaviour as being as unacceptable as drink-driving is today,” said chief executive Philip Bowman.

Sensible drinking messages are one of the proposals in the government’s Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy, which threatens legislation if the industry doesn’t make enough voluntary progress by 2007.

Coors has included the sensible drinking message on its redesigned Carling packaging, while Scottish Courage put a health warning and unit information on Newcastle Brown and will roll out the new labelling across all brands including Foster’s and Kronenbourg this year. Diageo will also put a message on its packaging this year.
Helen Gregory