We label medicine to save lives – it’s time to do the same for alcohol
A UK label on a bottle of wine (Carolyn Jenkins/Alamy)
3 min read
Currently in the UK, a bottle of orange juice is required to display more nutritional information than a bottle of alcoholic beer.
What is even more shocking is that there are no warning labels for alcohol, despite it being a Group 1 carcinogen causing at least seven cancers.
Positively, the recently published National Cancer Plan for England does recognise alcohol as a key risk factor for cancer. That is why the government’s pledge to introduce mandatory alcohol labels is so important. Consumers have a right to know the risks posed by drinking to their health. But the longer consumers wait for this vital public health intervention, the more families will be impacted by the devastating trauma of alcohol-related cancer.
Before becoming a Member of Parliament, I was a practising pharmacist. A central part of my job was ensuring patient safety when dispensing medicines – which are subject to stringent labelling requirements including clear safety warnings. Yet in my years behind the pharmacy counter, I saw many people lose their lives because of alcohol, a substance sold without a single mandatory health warning. This inconsistency has never sat right with me.
Like many people, I drink. This isn’t about abstinence. It is about transparency, public safety and an informed choice.
Alcohol deaths reached a record high in 2023, following a rise in high-risk drinking during the pandemic, where people were drinking at home without the social element of pubs and the safeguards they provide such as regulated hours. Public awareness of alcohol’s health harms remains strikingly low. Polling by World Cancer Research Fund found that only seven per cent of UK adults are aware of the alcohol-cancer link, and a staggering 25 per cent believe there are no health consequences attached to alcohol whatsoever.
Warning labels on alcohol are a simple, cost-effective way to raise awareness, reaching people both at the point of purchase and consumption. Crucially, they also build public support for wider alcohol policies such as minimum unit pricing.
Beyond being mandatory and consistent across all products, labels must include clear warnings on pregnancy, drink-driving and the legal drinking age, alongside nutritional information such as calories, ingredients and allergens.
Cancer warnings are especially vital given low public awareness and evidence that they are most effective in changing consumer behaviour. In South Korea, where manufacturers can choose which health warnings to display, cancer warnings are rarely selected. We must not repeat that mistake and build rules that work to protect people while giving them the information to make a choice.
This isn’t about abstinence. It is about transparency, public safety and an informed choice
Certain things need to be kept off labels too, such as QR codes and links to industry-funded websites. We must also challenge claims that labelling will inhibit trade and economic growth.
These requirements will only apply to alcohol sold within the UK and have no impact on exports. In fact, they could reduce the immense economic burden alcohol places on society, on our NHS and support healthier, more sustainable growth.
The success of labelling will depend on swift implementation and government’s resolve to stand firm against industry pressure. In recent months, we have seen industry lobbying successfully delay Ireland’s forthcoming alcohol labels – a cautionary tale for ministers in this country.
Consumers deserve honesty. Just as medicines carry clear, factual information, so too should alcohol. The government’s decision to act should be applauded – but we must ensure that the new labels remain free from industry influence and are implemented at pace.
Sadik Al-Hassan is Labour MP for North Somerset and a registered pharmacist
