Would you sell alcohol to your child?

Objective

To remind sales staff that the law forbids them from selling alcohol to minors.

To help sales staff gauge the age of a buyer, and thus whether they should to ask for ID.

To let minors know that the law forbids them from buying alcohol.

To raise awareness about minimum purchase age and the danger of underage alcohol consumption.

Description

The aim of the campaign is to inform sales staff about the Law on the Circulation of Alcoholic Beverages which states that a person under the age of 25 must show an identity document (ID) when purchasing alcohol.

Visuals (stickers, badges, infographics) are used to remind sales staff to check the ID of a customer if they look under 25. The seller is encouraged to imagine what it would be like to sell alcohol to their own child and what the consequences would be, thus appealing for them to think twice before selling alcohol to young people without checking their age.

In 2017, a social media campaign aimed to encourage more of the HoReCa (Hotels, Cafés, Restaurants) sector to become involved. Monthly learning sessions (video presentations) were set up for sales personnel to offer practical assistance. A special journal for Members of parliament and sales staff was distributed in cooperation with the Latvian Merchants and Sellers Association.

In 2019, LANA realised that the major retail stores have their own system to remind sales staff to check for ID, therefore, small shops and small bars in Latvia became the main target of the campaign. Two videos for retailers were created to remind them to check the ID of customers who look under 25, and the legal consequences of not doing so. Also, beginning in 2019, influencers act as mystery shoppers. Although the influencer is over 18 and can legally buy alcohol, they look under 25 therefore ID must be requested by the sales staff. The influencers video themselves buying alcohol and share it on social media. In addition to educating sales staff, the videos aim to highlight to minors that they should not buy alcohol and the legal consequences if they try to do so. 2019 influencers: BetaBeidz, Edgars Fresh and Santa Buša. 2020 influencer: Roy Roger and Kristiāns Grāmatiņš.

In 2020, LANA met with the Latvian Traders’ Association (LTA), the State Revenue Service (SRS), the State Police (VP) and the Riga Municipal Police (RPP) to discuss further developing the campaign. It was decided create another educational video which was created in 2021 because of COVID-19 restrictions in 2020. The video shows an undercover police officer catching a minor trying to buy alcohol and highlights the legal consequences of trying to buy alcohol whilst underage.

Partners

Association of Hotels and Restaurants of Latvia (AHRL)

Latvian traders association (LTA)

Association of leading Latvian food retailers (LPTA)

Latvian Medical Association (LMA)

State Revenue Service, State Police

Results

2021: The video was placed on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and on the responsible drinking website (atbildigi.lv). On Instagram it reached over 1,500, had over 1,700 impressions, was liked 27 times and was saved once. On Facebook it reached over 26,700, had over 1,400 engagements, 18 likes and 14 shares.

2020: Rojs Rodžers: The videos on YouTube had over 47,000 views and on Instagram they had 16,000 views and 400 comments. The videos on LANAs Instagram reached over 19,100 and had over 24,600 impressions. On Facebook they reached over 9,500, had 10 likes and 4 shares. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 situation, the message was not amplified in the media.

2019: BetaBeidz: The video was published on 2 December 2019 on Instagram where it was viewed over 37,000 times. On LANA’s Facebook it was viewed 84,000 times and reached over 21,000. It also had over 18,600 engagements, was shared 107 times, had 466 reactions and 124 comments. On LANA’s Instagram it was viewed 812 times, reached 1,491 and had 107 engagements. Edgars Fresh: The video was published on 3 December 2019 on YouTube. It was viewed over 18,900 times, had 1,500 likes and 140 comments. On LANA’s Facebook it was viewed 12,000 times, shared 21 times, had 61 reactions and 12 comments. The post also reached over 21,000 and had over 1,800 engagements. On LANA’s Instagram it was viewed 1,355 times, reached over 2,500 and had 110 engagements. Santa Buša: The video was published on 7 December 2019 on YouTube. It was viewed over 15,700 times, was liked 522 times and was commented on 40 times. On LANA’s Facebook it was viewed 19,000 times, was shared 44 times, had 64 reactions and 45 comments. The post reached over 28,000 and had over 3,700 engagements. On LANA’s Instagram it was viewed 1,177 times and commented on 3 times. The post reached 1,860 and had 105 engagements. Media outreach: The campaign had the potential to reach more than 500,000 people through the media. It was mentioned on the TV news reaching around 114,900 people. It was mentioned twice on the radio reaching around 50,000 people. It was mentioned in two newspapers and twice in a magazine. The message also was taken up in at least 5 internet publications (eg. NRA, Lat, Aprinkis, Skaties, LVPortals, Aluksniesiem and lr1.lsm).

In 2017, Around 400 HoReCa sites joined the campaign and 1,254 Maxima (retailer) cashier tills were set up with campaign materials. The campaign had the potential to reach 2 million. TV: Mentioned 5 times on the news reaching around 320,000 people. Radio: Mentioned 11 times reaching around 220,000 people. 10+ articles on the internet about the campaign. 1,000 copies of the special journal were distributed.

In 2016, more than 500 shops, bars, restaurants, and cafes were supplied with materials (2 big posters, 10 stickers, 10 flyers, calendars and brochures). 3 newspaper articles, 1 analytic programme on tackling the problem, 3 radio news mentions and 15 articles on the internet reached around 250,000 people with the potential to reach around 1 million.

Measurement & evaluation

The police organise mystery shopper controls to verify that alcohol or tobacco is not sold to minors:

2020 January – June (6 months): 95 cases where alcohol or tobacco was sold to minors
2019 January – June (6 months): 160 cases where alcohol or tobacco was sold to minors

In 2020 LANA and research company Norstat carried out an online survey with 300 young people aged 18-25. Results show that 33% had bought an alcoholic beverage without showing their ID. However, 15% stated that they had tried to buy alcohol as a minor but could not since they had been asked to show proof that they were legally able to do so. 52% had not tried to buy alcohol when underage.

2019 evaluation using mystery shoppers, (one of which is a minor), who try to buy alcohol without showing proof that they are legally able to do so. Pre-campaign results show that: Alcohol was sold to mystery shoppers 28/50 times (56%). One mystery shopper (a minor) bought alcohol 15 times, without showing their ID. He was asked to show it 6 times but said he left it at home – and was still able to buy alcohol. Another (female: 18+) bought alcohol 12 times without showing her ID. These results were shared with State Police for follow-up.

2017 evaluation results: Males bought alcohol 2/20 times (10%) and females 9/26 times (>35%). The problem is worse for females as they can often look older than they are. Shops found in violation of the law were eager to join the campaign. Sales staff gave positive feedback about the campaign, underlining the need to be reminded to ask for ID as this can be forgotten when very busy. They also appreciated being reminded why it is important to make sure that the buyer can legally buy alcohol. The health sector figures show that minors drink less and less, but the problem of underage drinking still exists.

2016 evaluation results: Alcohol was sold to minors 17 out of 50 times (34%) before and 13 out of 50 times (26%) after the campaign. The Government police stated that they would also be carrying out mystery shopping at the same time as the campaign which led to fewer staff selling alcohol to minors. In addition, males were less successful in buying alcohol (2/25 compared to 15/25 for females) pre-campaign. Post-campaign this had dropped to 0/25 for males and 13/25 for females.