University of Helsinki
In July 2020, the World Health Organization launched the report “Alcohol marketing in the WHO European region: Update report on the evidence and recommended policy actions” (WHO, 2020), authored by CEACG researchers Mikaela Lindeman and Matilda Hellman.
For the launch Hellman presented at the webinar “Alcohol marketing in the WHO European region: Results from the update report on the evidence and recommended policy actions”. The event, which gathered WHO/Euro member states and stakeholders, discussed the main conclusions and policy considerations of the report, including how the conclusions and considerations can be translated into concrete actions at a country level. An aim has been to learn from member states that have successfully implemented alcohol marketing restrictions and to discuss ways forward as well as challenges faced by the member states. The Finnish Alcohol Act Amendment from 2015 exemplifies how internet marketing can be expressed in terms of principles of protecting citizens from marketing.
In her latest Editorial of the Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, Hellman discusses the challenges in authoring the report:
“As a phenomenon alcohol marketing ties into massive contemporary trends and principle questions regarding how to understand health behaviour, citizens and consumers in view of governance principles and commercial interests. Without such a contextual framing, the evidence on alcohol marketing makes little sense in today’s world. This is true for other global health questions as well.”
Read the full text of the editorial here.
See some recent publications on alcohol marketing by the CEACG group:
Goiana-da-Silva, F., Cruz-e-Silva, D., Lindeman, M., Hellman, M., Angus, C., Karlsson, T., … Ferreira-Borges, C. (2019) Implementing the European Action Plan on Alcohol. The Lancet Public Health, published online September 3, 2019.Xxx
Kauppila, E., Lindeman, M., Svensson, J., Katainen, A. & Hellman, M. (2019) Alcohol brands on social media sites in Finland and Sweden. A comparative audit study of brands’ presence and content as well as impact from a legislative change. Publications of the Faculty of Social Sciences no 113. Helsinki: University of Helsinki.
Lindeman, M. & Hellman, M. (2019) Update report on policies for reducing the marketing of alcoholic beverages. Focusing on best buys series. World Health Organization.
Lindeman, M., Katainen, A. H., Svensson, J., Kauppila, E. K., & Hellman, C. M. E. (2019) Compliance with regulations and codes of conduct at social media accounts of Swedish alcohol brands. Drug and Alcohol Review, 38(4), 386-390.