Commercial interference into the democratic process is a serious barrier to the development and implementation of policies that benefit the public. Political donations made by companies that produce, sell, and market health harmful products, such as alcohol companies, is an example of such political interference.
The National Electoral Council of Colombia has published details of the income reports of the active political parties in 2023. La Silla Vacía, an independent online news website, delved deeper into the details of the companies that appeared as donors to political parties. Their findings show that the alcohol industry is a dominant force in Colombia’s political arena.
Of the 35 active political parties in 2023, eleven parties received money from private companies. Colombia’s laws allow both individuals and corporations to make donations in cash and in kind. However, there are limits to the amount that presidential candidates can spend of these donations on their own campaigns. Companies can also donate to regional and congressional elections, other than to presidental campaigns. This allows corporations to buy significant influence on several levels through their donations.
These political donations allow alcohol companies to buy political influence. In this way, Big Alcohol can disrupt policy making processes that would threaten their profits if decision-makers placed people’s health before alcohol industry interests.
Alcohol company the largest donator in Colombian politics
Bavaria S.A. (also known as Bavaria Brewery) is fully owned by the world’s largest beer producer AB InBev. It is the largest alcohol company in the country. Bavaria is the second largest political donor in Colombia. The beer giant’s donations in 2023 alone amounted to $5,660 million pesos.
Bavaria donated to six of the largest political parties and two other minor parties, thereby ensuring that their influence permeates a wide range of political ideologies and securing influence on the government as well as the opposition. Bavaria S.A. is not the sole alcohol company that buys political influence in Colombia.
Coca-Cola Femsa is the fourth largest donor, with $2,040 million pesos donated in 2023.
Coca-Cola Femsa is a Mexican multinational beverage and retail company and the world’s largest independent Coca-Cola bottling group. Among the 134 brands in their portfolio are several alcohol brands, such as Topo Chico Hard Seltzer.
Strategically, the company donates through two seperate companies, Compañía de Servicios Comerciales, Atencom, and Industria Nacional de Gaseosas SA. Coca-Cola Femsa also donated to the six largest political parties in the country.
Together, both alcohol giants pumped $7,700 million pesos (ca. $US 2 million) into political parties in Colombia, making Big Alcohol the industry sector with the single largest political spending.
Ardila Lülle – the number one corporate giant spending on political donations in Colombia – also controls a beer company (together with a Chilean company): Central Cervecera de Colombia.
Political lobbying key business strategy for alcohol companies
The alcohol industry’s profit maximization interests are in direct conflict with public health and wellbeing.
Political interference, or lobbying, is part of Big Alcohol’s Dubious Five strategies. It is alcohol industry activity to eliminate or minimize any alcohol policy effort that would threaten their sales and profits. The focus of this Dubious Five strategy is the decision-makers and opinion leaders with the power to shape and make alcohol policy decisions. Big Alcohol is paying lobbyists and lobby front groups to interfere in public health policy making and – as in the case of Colombia – to deploy heavy amounts of spending in the form of “political donations”
But Big Alcohol will request returns on their investments.
At the same time, alcohol harm is a serious public health concern in Colombia.
The country ranks high in the global comparison for years of lives lost due to alcohol. Cancer, liver cirrhosis, and road traffic injuries due to alcohol amount to more than 4000 deaths alone.
More than 10% of men in Colombia have an alcohol use disorder and more than half of all teenage boys who consume alcohol engage in binge alcohol use.
But Colombia lacks effective alcohol policy solutions to tackle these problems adequately. Alcohol industry interference and political parties doing the dirty work for the interests of Big Alcohol ensure that alcohol policy development remains ignored.
Sources
Encyclopedia.com: “Politics and business magazines > Bavaria S.A.“
La Silla Vacia: “This is how companies donated to political parties in 2023“
National Library of Medicine: “Addressing harmful alcohol use in primary care in Colombia: Understanding the sociocultural context“
Reuters: “SABMiller looks for more beer growth in Colombia“
