Consumer group argues that near-beer ads are loaded
The consumer advocacy group has been warning brewers for several years that advertising alcohol-free products violates the spirit of the law that bans advertising of alcoholic products. The proposed civil suit would be the first case to go to court against brewers under the ad ban law.
"We want to make it clear we have nothing against beer, or Zywiec in particular," said Malgorzata Niepokulczycka, president of the consumer group. "But we will not tolerate beer producers breaking the law."
The federation said that by consciously creating ads that use the colors and logos of their regular beers, the breweries daily break the Law on Preventing Alcoholism - passed in 1982 - that bans all ads for beverages with an alcohol content higher than 1.5%.
"It's a conscious manipulation of consumers' minds and a violation of the law," Niepokulczycka said last week.
To bolster its claims, the federation pointed to a survey released last week from independent market research company GETAS-IRWiK, which showed that when seeing an ad for an alcohol-free beer brand 93.9% of the respondents immediately associated the ad with regular beer.
Almost all the 1,000 respondents (98%) were able to immediately name the brand of beer that the ad was based on.
"Beer makers advertise their alcoholic products hiding their message behind the alcohol-free label," Niepokulczycka said.
The federation said it planned to file suit in mid-June against Zywiec, a brewer it claimed was randomly chosen. Zywiec, which sold 2.14 million hectoliters of beer in 1997, refused comment on the proposed lawsuit. "We cannot comment on the case, when it's not a case yet," Roman Rozbowski, a legal representative for the brewer, said last week.
Shareholders appeared little concerned with the proposed lawsuit. Share prices in Zywiec, one of two brewers traded on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE), rose 1.2% to zl. 340 a share by the end of trading Thursday, the first day of trading following the announcement.
Other brewers also weren't overly worried by the federation's attack.
Some brewers believe that if non-alcoholic beer ads make people think of beer, that's not their problem.
"We never tried to manipulate consumers," said Zdzislaw Krynski, president of the managing board of Bosman Browar Szczecin brewery. The company last year released an ad for alcohol-free beer featuring several characters who wink as they say that the brand is non-alcoholic.
"If one's interpretation of the ad differs from the intention of the producer, it's this person's problem," Krynski said last week.
And the advertising agency that prepared the award-winning ad for Bosman said a viewer's interpretation is beyond its responsibility. "Everyone has a right to their own interpretation of the ad," said Marek Bimer, creative director at Grey Warszawa advertising agency. "Our job was to create a campaign for a non-alcoholic beer."
Bosman sold 1,500 hectoliters of alcohol-free beer last year, or 0.3% of its 478,742 hectoliters of normal beer produced last year. This year the brewery expects to sell more than 550,000 hectoliters of beer, including more than 5,000 hectoliters of alcohol-free beer. Bosman also uses distinctive labeling for its non-alcoholic brand on billboards and in commercial spots, Krynski said.
"Some retailers even think we solely produce alcohol-free beer," said Edward Popielarz, the brewery's marketing director. He also admitted that lots of breweries do use alcohol brands' packaging and labels to advertise their alcohol-free brands. Bosman's main outlet for alcohol-free beer is gas stations.
"Drivers seem to like it a lot," he said.
But Niepokulczycka said last week the consumer federation was not in the mood for jokes. "The whole industry is winking but we won't follow suit," she said.
One brewery's marketing director, who did not want to be named, said the federation had little chance of winning in court.
"We act according to the letter of law," the executive said. "So far in Polish law, it's these facts that count, not what associations beer advertising brings to people's minds."
Parliament joined the beer battles last week with right-wing deputies from Solidarity Election Action (AWS) submitting a draft amendment to the 1982 law banning alcohol advertising. The amendment called for a ban on advertising for alcohol-free beer unless it features distinctly different packaging and logos from alcoholic brands.
However, deputies from AWS' junior coalition partner Freedom Union (UW) have already submitted a draft law that takes a far different approach to beer advertising. The UW deputies want to drop the beer ad ban altogether, arguing that beer drinking positively influences drinking habits because people shift to less alcoholic libations.
"We want to make it clear we have nothing against beer, or Zywiec in particular," said Malgorzata Niepokulczycka, president of the consumer group. "But we will not tolerate beer producers breaking the law."
The federation said that by consciously creating ads that use the colors and logos of their regular beers, the breweries daily break the Law on Preventing Alcoholism - passed in 1982 - that bans all ads for beverages with an alcohol content higher than 1.5%.
"It's a conscious manipulation of consumers' minds and a violation of the law," Niepokulczycka said last week.
To bolster its claims, the federation pointed to a survey released last week from independent market research company GETAS-IRWiK, which showed that when seeing an ad for an alcohol-free beer brand 93.9% of the respondents immediately associated the ad with regular beer.
Almost all the 1,000 respondents (98%) were able to immediately name the brand of beer that the ad was based on.
"Beer makers advertise their alcoholic products hiding their message behind the alcohol-free label," Niepokulczycka said.
The federation said it planned to file suit in mid-June against Zywiec, a brewer it claimed was randomly chosen. Zywiec, which sold 2.14 million hectoliters of beer in 1997, refused comment on the proposed lawsuit. "We cannot comment on the case, when it's not a case yet," Roman Rozbowski, a legal representative for the brewer, said last week.
Shareholders appeared little concerned with the proposed lawsuit. Share prices in Zywiec, one of two brewers traded on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE), rose 1.2% to zl. 340 a share by the end of trading Thursday, the first day of trading following the announcement.
Other brewers also weren't overly worried by the federation's attack.
Some brewers believe that if non-alcoholic beer ads make people think of beer, that's not their problem.
"We never tried to manipulate consumers," said Zdzislaw Krynski, president of the managing board of Bosman Browar Szczecin brewery. The company last year released an ad for alcohol-free beer featuring several characters who wink as they say that the brand is non-alcoholic.
"If one's interpretation of the ad differs from the intention of the producer, it's this person's problem," Krynski said last week.
And the advertising agency that prepared the award-winning ad for Bosman said a viewer's interpretation is beyond its responsibility. "Everyone has a right to their own interpretation of the ad," said Marek Bimer, creative director at Grey Warszawa advertising agency. "Our job was to create a campaign for a non-alcoholic beer."
Bosman sold 1,500 hectoliters of alcohol-free beer last year, or 0.3% of its 478,742 hectoliters of normal beer produced last year. This year the brewery expects to sell more than 550,000 hectoliters of beer, including more than 5,000 hectoliters of alcohol-free beer. Bosman also uses distinctive labeling for its non-alcoholic brand on billboards and in commercial spots, Krynski said.
"Some retailers even think we solely produce alcohol-free beer," said Edward Popielarz, the brewery's marketing director. He also admitted that lots of breweries do use alcohol brands' packaging and labels to advertise their alcohol-free brands. Bosman's main outlet for alcohol-free beer is gas stations.
"Drivers seem to like it a lot," he said.
But Niepokulczycka said last week the consumer federation was not in the mood for jokes. "The whole industry is winking but we won't follow suit," she said.
One brewery's marketing director, who did not want to be named, said the federation had little chance of winning in court.
"We act according to the letter of law," the executive said. "So far in Polish law, it's these facts that count, not what associations beer advertising brings to people's minds."
Parliament joined the beer battles last week with right-wing deputies from Solidarity Election Action (AWS) submitting a draft amendment to the 1982 law banning alcohol advertising. The amendment called for a ban on advertising for alcohol-free beer unless it features distinctly different packaging and logos from alcoholic brands.
However, deputies from AWS' junior coalition partner Freedom Union (UW) have already submitted a draft law that takes a far different approach to beer advertising. The UW deputies want to drop the beer ad ban altogether, arguing that beer drinking positively influences drinking habits because people shift to less alcoholic libations.
