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In Japan, people of the younger generations tend to drink much less alcohol than the previous ones, which means that the decline in consumption in recent years has also led to a drop in tax revenue related to taxes on drinks. Now the Japanese government wants to revitalize the sector and increase revenues with a special initiative: a competition aimed at collecting ideas to get young people to drink more.
The competition was presented by the Japanese tax authority, it’s called “Sake Viva!” and takes its name from sake, the typical Japanese alcoholic drink made from rice. Aimed at people aged between 20 and 39, it invites them to propose projects, promotional initiatives and innovative strategies to promote the consumption of alcohol among their peers, both in public places and at home: not only sake, but also beer, for example, Wine, whiskey and shochu, a typical distillate.
The contestants have until September 9th to propose their ideas: then the best projects will be developed with the help of experts and the final proposals will be presented in November.
According to the Japanese authorities, the drop in alcohol consumption and the consequent drop in sales are linked to the aging and progressive decline of the population due to the declining birth rate and lower immigration, but not only; The COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions to limit the spread of infection have helped change younger people’s drinking habits and reduced drinking, also due to the lack of social gatherings where people traditionally drink together with colleagues.
According to the Revenue Agency, the Japanese drank an average of 75 liters of alcoholic beverages per person in 2020, compared to 100 liters in 1995. Also according to the Agency, taxes on alcohol contributed 1.7 percent to annual tax revenue in 2020 third from 1980. Beer sales in fiscal 2020, which ended in March 2021, were down 20 percent from the previous year.
Unsurprisingly, the initiative has elicited mixed reactions in the country. On the one hand there are those who criticize competition, arguing that trying to increase alcohol consumption would mean encouraging a habit that risks damaging people’s health; On the other hand, there are those who have already proposed ideas in line with what promotes the same competition, for example using artificial intelligence systems to persuade people to consume alcoholic beverages, using the image of famous actresses in the exploit the virtual world of the metaverse.
– Also read: We’ve been drinking for a while