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Good morning and thank you for coming. I am Sally Greenberg, the
Executive Director of the National Consumers League based in
Washington, DC. Joining me today is a panel of consumer
leaders, public health officials and experts in alcohol issues.
We will briefly summarize our positions and then be available
for questions.
For the consumer community, the fight for a useful
alcohol label is like the movie “Groundhog Day.” For more than
30 years, consumer groups have petitioned the government, filed
lawsuits and testified on Capitol Hill. And for more than 30
years, nothing has changed. The federal agency responsible --
the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau or TTB and its
predecessor agency -- has spent 30 years trying to decide if
alcohol labeling – disclosing important information for
consumers -- is really necessary.
Let’s talk about what can be accomplished in less than 30 years
when there is the will to make meaningful change:
·
It took only eight years from when
President Kennedy declared the goal of landing a man on the moon
to when Neil Armstrong took his first step in July 1969.
·
It took 17 years to conduct the research
that lead to the first polio vaccine.
·
And it took 28 years from the laying of
the first brick of the Berlin Wall in 1961 to when it began to
come down in 1989.
If these feats can be accomplished in less than 30 years, why
are we still fighting for a standardized alcohol label? On
behalf of the nation’s public health and nutrition
organizations, consumer advocates, leading public health
officials and consumers themselves, we say it is time for TTB to
issue a useful final regulation requiring alcohol labeling. And
by “useful,” we mean the same kind of standardized labeling
information on beer, wine and distilled spirits products that is
now required for conventional foods, dietary supplements, and
nonprescription drugs.
In 2005, we thought we were close. TTB had issued a
request for public comments and received over 18,000 letters.
The vast majority of these comments supported a
standardized label listing the number of calories and the amount
of alcohol per serving as well as standard drink information.
But, by 2007,
we were back to Groundhog Day. TTB published a rule proposing to
require a “Serving Facts” panel on beer, wine and distilled
spirits. But TTB left out the most important information
consumers need when consuming an alcoholic beverage -- the
amount of alcohol in a serving. This omission resulted in
another barrage of letters from consumers and public health
leaders, all calling for complete information on the
label.
Now that TTB has heard all the arguments, we are here to
urge TTB to get it right by mandating a standardized alcohol
label that tells Americans what they need to know -- the alcohol
content, the amount of alcohol in a serving, the definition of a
standard drink, the number of calories and facts about other
ingredients.
Towards this end, today, we are issuing a new report laying out
the need for a standardized and complete alcohol label. Based on
a review going back to 1977, this report makes a compelling case
that over-consumption of alcohol remains a serious problem. And
part of the solution to reducing alcohol abuse, drunk driving,
obesity, and the many diseases attributable to excessive alcohol
intake is to give consumers an easy-to-read, uniform label with
complete information about alcohol and calorie content per
serving.
In addition to this new report, we want TTB to hear from
consumers themselves -- which is why we have commissioned
Opinion Research Corporation to survey 1,003 adult Americans
aged 21 and over this month. Reinforcing the findings of
numerous other polls conducted over the years, this poll shows
consumers want government policy to change.
Moreover, this poll documents the kind of information Americans
want on a standardized alcohol label. According to the ORC poll,
first and foremost, consumers want alcohol labels to list the
alcohol content and the amount of alcohol per serving.
Our new poll also validates the usefulness of alcohol labels to
educate consumers about following the Dietary Guidelines’
advice on moderate drinking -- which is defined as up to one
drink per day for women and up to two drinks a day for men. When
asked if Americans should follow this advice, seven in ten
respondents -- 71 percent -- agreed and almost six in ten -- 58
percent -- said they would use the alcohol label for this
purpose. These findings reinforce a previous online survey
conducted for Shape Up America! in December 2007, which reported
that 79 percent of consumers would support alcohol labeling that
summarizes the Dietary Guidelines’ advice.
With both the public health community
and consumers demanding change, the question for TTB is not
whether but when.
The same nation that put a man on the moon and made it possible
to tear down the Berlin Wall should be able to give its citizens
useful labeling information on beer, wine and distilled spirits.
As a matter of improved public health, this is the right thing
to do.
To explain what information should be on this label and the
health justifications, I would now like to introduce the other
panelists here today:
·
First, you will hear from Chris Waldrop,
Director of the Food Policy Institute at the Consumer Federation
of America. Chris will outline what consumer organizations and
the public health community believe are the essential components
of an alcohol label;
·
Then, you will hear from J.T. Griffin,
V.P. Public Policy, of Mothers Against Drunk Driving or MADD, who will summarize
the views of those working to curb drunk driving and alcohol
abuse.
·
After J.T., Dr. Winston Price, past
President of the National Medical Association, will summarize
the public health justification to better alcohol labeling.
·
And finally, Dr. Barbara Moore, president
and CEO of Shape Up America!, will focus on the Dietary
Guidelines for Americans and how a useful alcohol label can
affect consumer change.
Please hold your
questions until the panelists have presented their remarks and
then we will be pleased to take your questions. |
