Drinks trade to combat youth binges

A new group representing the drinks industry and breweries has admitted that young people indulge regularly in binge drinking.

MEAS, founded to promote respect for alcohol, said occasional excesses in consumption were "part of the learning curve". But its chief executive, Ms Fionnuala Sheehan, said research showed that a high percentage of young adults were "crash drinking", or drinking regularly to get drunk.

MEAS - Mature Enjoyment of Alcohol in Society Ltd - which describes its role as to "promote social responsibility within the drinks industry and sensible drinking among consumers", includes among its members Beamish & Crawford, the C&C Group and Guinness, as well as the Licensed Vintners' Association and Vintners' Federation of Ireland.

This new alliance is to co-sponsor a poster campaign during the next fortnight with the Union of Students in Ireland, to encourage students to "respect alcohol and respect themselves". The "eye-catching" posters will be on display in 50 college campuses throughout Ireland, as well as in bars and off- licences used by students.

The USI president, Mr Colm Jordan, said the union wanted students to be responsible and aware of the dangers associated with drink. The campaign would run for two weeks and reach 250,000 students.

Asked how effective a 14-day poster campaign could expect to be, Mr Jordan said: "This is a long journey. This is clearly a first step. I think we have struck a chord with this one, but we do recognise there is no easy solution, no silver bullet to solve the issue. But these posters are clearly provocative and we hope will cause people to stop, think and discuss the issues."

The posters would continue to be displayed in some off-licences and bars.

Ms Sheehan said the campaign was "the start of a long haul to change the image of alcohol and the culture of excess around alcohol in Ireland. Getting drunk should be as socially unacceptable as drink-driving."