Japan campaign for young people to drink more

Japan’s National Tax Agency is asking for ideas that could encourage younger citizens to drink alcohol while the government worries about the tax implications of generational change.

The original “Sake Viva!” supported by the government, which ends in early September, invites people between the ages of 20 and 39 to help create business ideas to revitalize a sector hit by demographic changes, the pandemic and the disinterest of the population.

The planned intervention follows the failure of Japan’s beverage industry, for all its marketing powers, to stem the protracted slump in Japanese consumption, which began well over a decade before the pandemic.

Taxes on alcoholic products accounted for 3% of government tax revenue in 2011 but dropped to 2% in 2020, according to the tax agency. The government of Japan has a chronic budget deficit and total debt equivalent to more than twice the country’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

A drop in the total volume of alcohol consumed in Japan was inevitable, as the population began to decline more than a decade ago and the proportion of citizens over 65 years old increased to more than a quarter of the country eight years ago.

According to figures released by the tax agency, the average annual adult alcohol intake in Japan has dropped from 100 liters a year in 1995 to 75 liters in fiscal 2020.

Younger Japanese, like many of their generation in other parts of the world, drink less than their ancestors, and an increasing number do not.

“Sake Viva!” it is the latest in a long history of regimens designed to offset the effects of aging and the shrinking Japanese population, as well as changing attitudes towards health and consumption.

The tax agency launched a project “Sake Viva!” in the first half of this year and solicited event ideas to promote the sale of alcoholic beverages.

The latest contest aims to come up with ideas that recognize fundamental lifestyle changes — not just those caused by the coronavirus pandemic, but also long-term factors that influence Japan’s consumption habits.

Organizers expect attendees to present “new products and designs” as well as plans to encourage drinking at home. They also hope to find ways to use the metaverse to generate the kind of cordial atmosphere that would traditionally lead to opening a bottle.

Japan’s Ministry of Health said it did not cooperate with the tax agency in the contest, but is in close contact with it about alcohol and health issues. The ministry added that it hopes the campaign will take into account the “adequate amount of alcohol consumption” that would avoid major health problems.