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The go-ahead from the Norwegian Health Directorate is evident from an exchange of letters with the Beer and Beverage Association (BROD), which believes that the expectation for free drinks may be high.
In an email to the Norwegian Health Directorate, the association describes a culture in which in various grocery stores and some nightclubs it has become common to expect to receive free boxes or trays of beer, according to NTB. They will taste the products before they possibly ingest them.
– A couple of breweries have reacted to this and will not give away anything for free, but then they are informed that it is a common practice, writes the Association of Brewers and Beverages and asks if it is a legal practice.
– Take the autumn holidays in Norway
Not everyone can get
The short answer from the Norwegian Health Directorate is that it is legal to give beer tastings without payment.
But not to that extent The Association of Breweries and Beverages beskriver. Only employees who have a “legitimate interest” in new product samples can get free beer.
– In the case of a sales license, this will be limited, for example, to the board, the deputy director and the purchasing director. In the case of a bar, in addition, the sommelier, butler and bartender will be considered to have a legitimate interest in receiving samples, while other employees of the bar or bar, accountant, doorman, cleaning staff, etc., do not usually fall within of this circle, write the address in your response to the Association of Breweries and Beverages.
The amount must be sober
The Norwegian Health Directorate also emphasizes that the number of samples should be sober.
– The Norwegian Directorate of Health considers that whole boxes or trays for a point of sale or service are not considered a sober quantity of a sample, when there are usually only 2 to 5 people who have a legitimate interest in evaluating the products. In addition, it is up to the supplier / manufacturer to assess whether they want to distribute such samples free of charge, indicated in the response.
Secretary of State Frøydis Høyem from the Ministry of Health and Care Services confirms to Dagbladet that they are familiar with the Norwegian Health Directorate’s preparation for the Brewery and Beverage Association.
– This only includes a limited number of people who have a legitimate interest in new product samples, such as the board, the deputy director and the purchasing manager, explains Høyem, adding:
– It only applies to a sober amount. That is, only what is necessary for the company to assess whether it should buy the product. Beyond that, we have no comment.
Alcohol at the door: – 30 minutes
– Between breweries and shops
In a clarification to Dagbladet, Brewery and Beverage Association communications chief Hege Ramseng writes that she only gave a “little sigh of relief” on behalf of two small breweries who were stunned by the practice.
– It is incorrect to say that I have described a “culture” in the industry in my email to the Norwegian Health Directorate, he writes.
When asked what the association thinks about the approval of the Norwegian Health Directorate for free tastings, Ramseng responds:
– At BROD we have no idea about this policy. It is a matter entirely between breweries and stores.
– Practice should be reviewed
Katrin Solbakken, manager of marketing and communications for Blue Cross, which is a coordinating organization in the field of intoxicants for 22 member organizations, has received the news of the opening of the beer from the Norwegian Directorate of Health. She says the organization doesn’t understand the practice.
– It seems a less holistic idea in relation to the fact that the intention behind the law related to the advertising of alcoholic beverages is to avoid influences that lead to increased demand. There is a reason we have special legislation regarding alcohol, the same way we have for tobacco, says Solbakken.
She thinks it all seems like a “badly thought-out practice that should be revised.”
– In that case, the authorities should take a closer look at the legislation and possibly do something about it.
What do you think of the fact that for some grocery stores and nightclubs it has become common practice to expect to receive free boxes or trays of beer?
– Sounds like a culture that should stop.
