South Africans spent about R1bn a day on alcohol in the days leading up to New Year’s Eve, according to the Rethink Your Drink campaign. She said the figure represents total consumer spending on beer, wine, spirits and ready-to-drink (pre-mixed alcoholic beverages) across retail, taverns, bars and restaurants. “In the days leading up to New Year’s Eve, this spending is reported to nearly triple, pushing daily alcohol sales to well over R1bn a day,” said Ancer.
Ancer said “while festive trading boosts profits, the knock-on costs fall on families and public services, from hospitals and policing to child protection”. “Rethink Your Drink is calling for stronger pricing and trading rules so that predictable harm is no longer treated as inevitable every festive season.” On the R150bn figure, Ancer cited market researcher Trade Intelligence. She said alcohol spending averages about R414m per day.
“When that daily figure is annualised, it equates to about R150bn per year in consumer spending on alcohol. These figures are drawn from market intelligence and retail category analysis used in public reporting to illustrate the scale of alcohol purchasing in South Africa, particularly during peak periods.” Ancer said weekly alcohol spending nearly triples between Christmas and New Year, from December 25 to January 1, rather than over the whole festive season. Early last year, deputy social development minister Ganief Hendricks told parliament about R7.7bn was spent on alcohol during this period.
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Ancer said this highlighted the scale of the spike compared with average daily sales. “The Trade Intelligence estimates are strongest for formal and licensed sales channels. Informal and illegal sales, including unlicensed shebeens and counterfeit products, are not comprehensively captured in retail datasets. A Euromonitor study commissioned by the alcohol industry has found that illicit alcohol represents a significant share of consumption in South Africa, with estimates suggesting nearly one in five drinks consumed is illicit and that the illicit market is worth tens of billions of rand annually.” Healthcare feels the impact most immediately, particularly emergency and trauma services.
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