Heightened hypocrisy: a critical analysis of how the alcohol industry-sponsored ‘‘Nigerian Beer Symposium’’ jeopardises public health

Abstract

This paper analyses how an alcohol industry-sponsored ‘Nigerian Beer Symposium’ (NBS) could endanger public health. The NBS, an annual one-day symposium, sponsored by Heineken-Nigerian Breweries, was recently introduced to create awareness of the ‘health and nutritional benefits of beer consumption’. Amongst other resource persons, Heineken-Nigerian Breweries contracts professors, medical doctors, nutritionists, advertisers, and celebrities from Africa and Europe to discuss the health and nutritional benefits of beer consumption. While all of the speakers strategically focused on the health and nutritional benefits of beer consumption, a few, in passing, mentioned drinking in moderation. In particular, male speakers focused on how beer prevents cancer, reduces the incidence of kidney stones, enhances vitality and cardiovascular health, and facilitates longevity and cognition among the aged. The female speakers encouraged women to consume beer because it enhances vitality and improves skin/physical beauty. Overall, none of the speakers specifically mentioned the consequences of alcohol (mis)use. This paper argues that the NBS is strategically organised to encourage beer initiation and/or high consumption, which will increase the sponsor’s profit. By providing biased information about the purported health and nutritional benefits of beer, the NBS will mislead the public, leading to more alcohol-related problems in Nigeria. Therefore, NBS should be regulated by implementing WHO-recommended alcohol policies in Nigeria.

Keywords:

• Alcohol
• alcohol industry
• alcohol-related disease
• Nigerian Beer Symposium
• policy

Note

Disclosure statement

The author reports no conflicts of interest. The author alone is responsible for the content and writing of this article.

Notes

1 NBS is attended by about 10,000 persons. The event attracts high media (electronic and print) attention, especially because of diverse pre-event publicities. The industry’s websites, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram profiles/pages are also used for pre- and post-event publicity. Because the event is attended by influential politicians, entertainers, and media organizations (terrestrial and satellite), post-event publicities via news commentaries, entertainment, and health news, and blogs are also popular.