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Alcohol consumption at lowest point for 60 years

Morven McLean
Morven McLean - [email protected]
Alcohol consumption at lowest point for 60 years
Less wine was drunk in 2012. Photo Jon Sullivan, Wikimedia Commons

The Swiss consumed on average 8.4 litres of pure alcohol last year – less than at any point since the early 1950s.

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Despite that the Federal Office of Public Health reckons around 250,000 people in Switzerland are alcoholics, the 20 Minuten website reported.

Swiss Alcohol Board (SAB) statistics published on Monday showed a slight drop from 8.5 litres per head in 2011.

Consumption has fallen by around one third since the 1980s when the average person put away 11 litres of pure spirit.

Expressed in quantities the Swiss drank about one litre less wine and a half litre less beer last year.

In 2012 the average person knocked back 36 litres of wine and 56.5 litres of beer, according to the statistics.

There was a trend towards drinking less wine, the SAB said, and in 2012 imports of both red and white wine fell.

Domestic production also fell last year.

There was virtually no change in the amount of spirits drunk. Average consumption last year was 3.9 litres, or 1.6 litres of pure alcohol.

The health office says consumption among certain population groups remains problematic.

It estimates that almost 20 percent of the population binges on alcoholic drinks on a regular basis. For women this means drinking at least four alcoholic beverages in one session every month and for men at least five drinks.

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