Exposed: The Strategies Big Alcohol Deploys to Interfere in WHO Alcohol Policy Consultation

Alcohol Issues - Episode 13

Exposed: The Strategies Big Alcohol Deploys to Interfere in WHO Alcohol Policy Consultation

Movendi International's weekly conversation about the latest alcohol issues in policy and science and new alcohol industry revelations.

Revealing Big Alcohol Strategies to Undermine the Development of WHO Global Alcohol Action Plan

For this episode of the Alcohol Issues Podcast we welcome Shehara Cooray. And back on the podcast is also Kristina Sperkova.

Shehara is the manager of the Big Alcohol Exposed campaign – Movendi International’s initiative to expose and counter-act the unethical business practices of the alcohol industry.

Shehara documents and exposes the unethical tactics and practices of transnational alcohol giants, compiles company profiles, maps the alcohol industry and works with Movendi International members to expose the strategies of Big Alcohol.

Kristina is the President of Movendi International and is occasionally joining the Alcohol Issues Podcast for special occasions.

With host Maik Dünnbier, Shehara and Kristina discuss the submissions of alcohol industry front groups to WHO's consultation about the development of an action plan to better implement the WHO Global Alcohol Strategy.

Most recently, the World Health Organization published all submissions made to a web-based consultation from late last year about the development of a global alcohol action plan.

Shehara analyzed 16 submissions of major alcohol industry front groups from around the world.

We discuss the findings of the analysis and try to make sense of them, examine whether there are commonalities or even through-lines across the different front groups, from different countries and parts of the world. We also shed light on the use of science, or lack thereof, by the alcohol industry in their submissions.

And Kristina joins the conversation to help put the claims into context and discuss what Big Alcohol is actually up to.

Taking a detailed look at the suggestions of the alcohol industry for the development of a global action plan is revealing. The conversation helps identify the contradictions, shortcomings and the PR-spin the alcohol industry applies even to a technical consultation on a specific issue.

It's eye-opening conversation with Shehara and Kristina. This rapid analysis and short evaluation helps to expose why and how Big Alcohol engages with the World Health Organization.

Resources for the conversation with Shehara and Kristina

Read the first part of the analysis: "Big Tobacco’s Strategic Ally Interferes in WHO Alcohol Policy Consultation"

Read the second part of the analysis: "Exposed: The Strategies Big Alcohol Deploys to Interfere in WHO Alcohol Policy Consultation"

Follow Kristina on Twitter.

Read Shehara's opinion pieces on our global voices portal.

Feedback

For feedback, questions and suggestions of future topics, please get in touch with maik.duennbier@movendi.ngo.

You are most welcome to follow Movendi International and Maik Dünnbier on Twitter, too.