A lot of people participate in Dry January. As we mentioned before, it is very popular and our turnover in this month is about twice as high as in other months. But there are also still people who don't like it, especially on social media. And we see a movement where people choose not to drink for a month or not to consume alcohol for a longer period. So it's time to delve deeper into this and list the developments around Dry January.
History
If we go back to the origins of Dry January, we end up in Finland, where people have been encouraged to take it easy in January since 1940. The Tammikuu ilman alkoholia, as it is called there. One in 8 Finns now participates in the alcohol-free month.
The real popularity of Dry January came when a charity in England organised the initiative in 2013. Since then, its popularity has skyrocketed in many countries and it has become a global phenomenon with millions of people participating.
Two sides of the same coin
On the one hand, this growth in popularity causes people to abstain from alcohol for longer periods of time, such as a few months or a year. And some people choose a different month to abstain.
On the other hand, there are also voices that say that alcohol-free (beer) is not cool and there are people who do not (yet) accept that you do not drink for a month.
We see the latter as a growth spurt in popularity. Where jokes were made at first like “non-alcoholic beer is like a bra on the clothesline..” (do we even have to finish the sentence?), we now see new jokes on social media. A well-known one is of course someone ordering a Dry White Wine (“because I’m doing Dry January”). But also people who fully commit to doing Dry January and then come up with multiple excuses to drink anyway (a wedding, a birthday and finally “because it’s Tuesday” 😂). We like it a little less when two friends meet and one offers a beer, the other responds that he’s doing Dry January, to which one walks away and responds with “See you in February”.
But despite these (new) jokes, not drinking is gaining popularity. We often see that people choose a different period to not drink. A friend of mine who has not drunk in September, one that does not drink in February (which is of course also the shortest month of the year) or several that do a number of months or a year in a row. People are becoming more aware of the negative consequences of consuming alcohol and are more concerned with their health. People are sporting more than a few years ago. For example, the number of gyms has quadrupled in the past 25 years and with the rise of smartwatches and fitness trackers, people are much more concerned with their daily activity. And people pay more attention to what they do or do not consume. Not drinking alcohol is also part of that. And because the taste of alcohol-free beers has become increasingly better, we are seeing an increasing demand for them.
What does the future hold for Dry January?
We predict that its popularity will only increase. For example, many restaurants and cafés have tasty alternatives, especially during this period, and they will also realise that the demand for these drinks remains throughout the year. We therefore think that Dry January will have a major ripple effect and that more people will participate and also become alcohol-free for longer or different periods. We will also see that alcohol consumption will decrease and that there will be less excessive drinking. A glass of beer or wine every day will become less and less accepted and people will slowly become aware of this. In the meantime, the aggressive lobby of alcohol giants will also be curbed. For example, in England and Australia, alcohol-free beer may not be advertised at sporting events if a variant with alcohol from the same brand is also available. And what about the American professor (Dr. Jackler) who has been advocating for some time for stricter warnings on alcohol products, similar to those for tobacco products, because of the evidence that alcohol consumption can contribute to various types of cancer, such as mouth, throat and esophageal cancer.
Well, we often hear that alcohol is developing in the same way as cigarettes have in the past decades. We think so too. But if you know that approximately 2.8 million people die each year as a result of alcohol consumption, then we think that is only a positive development.
And to end this blog on a positive note, we see that more and more people are realizing the positive effects of drinking less alcohol and it is becoming more and more accepted to not drink alcohol for an evening, a week, or a longer period. And we think that is a very good development.
Comments