Health Warnings will soon be required on Alcoholic Beverages
28/08/2007

Consumers have become accustomed to the health warnings found on cigarettes and other tobacco products. Similar health warnings will soon have to be placed on alcoholic beverages.

On 24 August 2007, the Minister of Health published Regulations in terms of Section 15 of the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act No. 54 of 1972.

In terms of these Regulations, which will come into operation 18 months from the date of publication, in other words in February 2009, container labels for alcoholic beverages will have to contain one of seven possible health warnings.

The seven possible health messages are as follows:

1. Alcohol reduces driving ability, don't drink and drive;
2. Don't drink and walk on the road, you may be killed;
3. Alcohol increases your risk to personal injuries;
4. Alcohol is a major cause of violence and crime;
5. Alcohol abuse is dangerous to your health;
6. Alcohol is addictive; and
7. Drinking during pregnancy can be harmful to your unborn baby.

The above health messages will have to be visible, legible and indelible and appear in a space specifically devoted to the message. They must be at least one eighth of the total size of the container label. The message must be in black on a white background.
Furthermore, the words "health", "healthy", "cure", "heal", "restorative" or other words or symbols claiming that alcoholic beverages have health- giving, medicinal or prophylactic properties as part of the name or descriptions of the product, are prohibited.

It is interesting to note that the Regulations only refer to health messages on container labels. No reference is made to any other form of advertising and it seems, therefore, that unlike cigarettes and tobacco products, which may not be advertised at all, alcoholic beverages may still be advertised. The Regulations also do not contain any requirement that the health warnings should appear in any other form of advertising for alcoholic beverages, save on the container labels. Advertisers should be aware, however, that the Advertising Standards Authority's Code of Advertising Practice contains regulations governing the advertisement of liquor.

Manufacturers of alcoholic beverages have been given sufficient time to implement the changes necessary to comply with the Regulations and any person (including a juristic person) who does not comply with these Regulations will be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine and/or imprisonment.