An update the evidences on the industry's cientific and political strategies.

1. An update on the evidence on the
industry’s scientific and political
strategies
Jim McCambridge
APN Symposium, Vilnius 22/06/23

2. GAAP approved 75th WHA 2022

3. • GAAP is more ambitious for health by 2030 and
identifies that alcohol is a public health priority.
• Policy interference by major alcohol companies is
a key problem, as are commercial activities that
are harmful to health.
• GAAP provides a changed view of the alcohol
industry, regarding it primarily now as a threat to
health.
• Achieving the ambitious aims of GAAP
necessitates adequate resources and the active
engagement of the public health community.

4. All changed, changed utterly:
A terrible beauty is born
WB Yeats, Easter 1916
Optimism, pessimism & realism…
KBS presentation of analysis and prospects

5. 76th WHA 2023 alcohol best buys
WHA 2023 Best buys
• Increase excise taxes on alcoholic beverages
• Enact and enforce bans or comprehensive
restrictions on exposure to alcohol advertising
(across multiple types of media)
• Enact and enforce restrictions on the physical
availability of retailed alcohol (via reduced hours
of sale)
(GAAP target 70% of countries implementing by 2030)

6. Transformative Research on the
Alcohol Industry, Policy & Science
Intro to TRAPS symposium, EAPC Oslo
17/06/22, by Prof. Jim McCambridge

7. APN one year ago
• At that time….
• Approximately 50 papers in peer reviewed
scientific journals, all are available free to
access
• Go to https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
& search ‘McCambridge AND industry’

15. Further papers on…
• ICAP & IARD…
• Historical policy/science papers
• CVD research & industry funding
• Funding decision-making by researchers
• Merchant of doubt and boundary work by
research community
• Brief interventions 2.0 & industry
• Alcohol policy advocacy during COVID
• GAAP

16. Landmark publication

17. Megatrend 1

18. Megatrend 1

19. Megatrend 1

20. Megatrend 1

21. Megatrend 2

22. Megatrend 2

23. Megatrend 2

27. GAAP operational principle
“The development of public policies to
reduce the harmful use of alcohol should be
protected, in accordance with national laws,
from commercial and other vested interests
that can interfere with and undermine public
health objectives”

28. Megatrend 2: CDoH frame
• Alcohol industry conduct in comparative context
• Conceptual work for empirical study
• Wider audience
• Politically diluted or astute?
• High level endorsement
• Opportunities & threat if alcohol focus lost or
seen as siloed or too limited

29. Closing thoughts
A year in the life of a field…it’s been quite a year
Contexts will drive future megatrends in
accumulation of evidence…
Prospects for pinning down the alcohol industry
uncertain, though evidence will advance
Evidence accumulation can also underpin progress
on alcohol policy and public health…