E-Malt.com News article: Sweden: Study advises against ending Swedish alcohol monopoly

Ending Sweden's state monopoly on alcohol sales would cause a surge in drink-related deaths and violence, according to a Swedish National Institute of Public Health study released on August 29th, according to Reuters.

The report said consumption would jump by 14 percent if liquor sales were opened only to privately licensed speciality stores and by a hefty 29 percent if alcohol were freely available in grocery stores.

Light beer - the 2.8 percent to 3.5 percent "people's beer", as it is called in Sweden - is currently available everywhere from grocery stores to petrol stations.

But Swedes must make personal purchases of more potent drinks through the 410 outlets of the government-run Systembolaget, although a European Union court decision in June overturned a Swedish ban on Internet sales of alcohol.

The question is what would happen if the alcohol monopoly - which according to the study's authors has been under "constant threat from the EU and others" of elimination - were lifted.

The EU has not demanded that Sweden scrap its sales monopoly which the study's authors said even conservative estimates showed would result in "significant" public health consequences.

"Privately licensed speciality shops annually would result in an estimated 700 additional deaths, 6700 additional assaults, and 7.3 million additional sick days," the study said, adding that these numbers would mark an 18 percent rise in alcohol-linked deaths and sick days.

"With grocery stores, the estimated additional annual toll would be 1580 deaths, 14,200 assaults and 16.1 million days of sick leave, a 40 percent increase," the report said.

Swedish residents over 15 consumed an estimated 9.7 litres of pure alcohol per capita in 2006.

Some 69 percent of this total was alcohol sold by the Systembolaget, people's beer sold in grocery stores, or drinks served in bars and restaurants. The remainder was the estimated amount of travellers' imports and smuggled and home-made alcohol.

Removing liquor sales from government control would lead to laxer enforcement of the drinking age - Systembolaget stores do not sell to a buyer under 20 years old - longer opening hours, more outlets and more advertising, the report said.

Systembolaget stores are closed on Sundays and advertising is closely regulated.

The study was led by Harold Holder, chairman of the US Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation's Prevention Research Centre, and included researchers from Sweden, Norway, Finland, the United States and Canada.


29 August, 2007