Ireland: Only €8 for Week’s Worth of Alcohol
It costs less than €8 to reach the recommended weekly limit of alcohol in Ireland, a new study has found. The survey, conducted by Alcohol Action Ireland, suggested that alcohol can be bought at a low-cost from not just major retail operators, but across all levels of retail.
In its latest alcohol market review and price survey, Alcohol Action Ireland (AAI) said the price of alcohol in Ireland “demonstrates the remarkable affordability of alcohol to every day shoppers”. Results show that men can reach the low-risk weekly guidelines of alcohol for as little as €7.48. For women it costs only €4.84 to reach their low-risk weekly alcohol limit.
The HSE low-risk weekly guidelines on alcohol consumption for healthy adults aged 18 to 65 are currently 17 standard drinks for men and 11 standard drinks for women.
AAI’s alcohol market review and price survey
Conducted over seven days in July 2019 across four nationwide locations – two urban and two regional/rural centres – the alcohol market review and price survey suggests that cider products remain the cheapest, strongest alcohol products available to the off-trade consumer. This remains the same as last year.
Beer products are the second cheapest just ahead of wine and liquor products.
The methodology used for the survey established the unit cost per standard which is set at 10g of pure alcohol in each product examined. So, for example, a 4.3% beer product in a 500ml volume container contains 1.7 standard alcoholic drinks, while a 37.5% gin product in a 700ml contains 21 standard alcoholic drinks.
A man consuming alcohol within the HSE low-risk guidelines can reach the weekly threshold for as little as €7.48 and women consuming alcohol can reach the weekly threshold for as little as €4.84, according to AAI.
Our survey highlights the clear and urgent need for the government and the Minister for Health to immediately commence the minimum unit pricing of alcohol products, which passed into law last October but lies stuck in political inertia,” AAI head of communications Eunan McKinney said, as per The Journal.
This availability of such cheap, strong alcohol is killing our people.
It is simply incredible that economic interest would continue to be advanced ahead of a public health measure that would benefit the wellbeing of our youth and those at high risk because of alcohol,” he said.
Urgent need for MUP
The report highlights the urgent necessity to implement minimum unit pricing of alcohol in Ireland to ensure that the low cost of the strongest and cheapest alcohol will be tackled.
It was announced earlier this month that a floor price for alcohol is being pushed forward by Minister for Health Simon Harris “as soon as possible” after data was released last month about minimum unit pricing in Scotland.
Results showed that alcohol consumption in Scotland has dropped to its lowest levels since the 1990s when records began after minimum unit pricing was brought in last year.
