Communities all over the world have long been coming together to celebrate ‘Dry January’, a month completely liberated from alcohol. In addition, the desire to free up more and more calendar days from alcohol is also growing.
For example, a new proposal in Mexico is suggesting that the first Monday in December is commemorated as an ‘Alcohol-Free City’ day. Local Morena deputy Alberto Martinez Urincho brought forward the proposal as an awareness raising measure.
According to the deputy, Mexico has a high prevalence of per capita alcohol use and therefore high levels of harm due to alcohol. He also said that consuming any amount of alcohol increases the risk of harm. Alcohol is a causal factor for 200 diseases, traumas, and other disorders.
Dry January becomes increasingly popular in Mexico
Movendi International has previously reported about the increasing popularity of Dry January in Mexico. The 2023 celebration saw approximately 30% of all alcohol consumers in Mexico taking part. 88% of those who did participate successfully stayed alcohol-free the whole month. CGA by NielsenIQ, a consumer research firm, established these figures.
The survey also asked participants of Dry January what non-alcoholic beverages they chose during their visit. The answers were as follows:
- Soft drinks were selected by the majority (72%),
- Hot drinks were the second most popular (34%), and
- Mocktails and non-alcoholic beer were selected by 32% and 25% respectively.
Growing interest in non-alcoholic beverages in Mexico
The study cited above also examined whether the people who tried non- and low-alcohol products would be interested in them past Dry January.
- Approximately 67% of consumers who tried mocktails said they would continue consuming them; and
- Nearly 72% of consumers who had non-alcoholic beer during Dry January mentioned that they would choose it again in the On Premise in the future.
These findings, as well the proposal for a ‘Day without Alcohol’ later in the year highlight the significant changes in the alcohol norm in Mexico. Denormalising alcohol as well as increasing alcohol-free spaces is key in order to help curb the alcohol harm in the country.
