EFRD FAILS TO GAIN SPONSORSHIP

Although spirits companies have come together in the U.S. and agree on self-regulatory guidelines in advertising, things have not gone so smoothly across the Atlantic. The European Forum for Responsible Drinking (EFRD) has had to postpone its plans to publish self-regulatory guidelines on drinks sponsorship because of a failure to find consensus on the subject.

Pernod Ricard chairman and CEO Patrick Ricard reportedly declined to back the proposals because he believed they weren’t stringent enough. Ricard has made it known that he disapproves of alcohol beverage companies sponsoring motor racing in the past, especially after Pernod resigned from The Century Council in September over the issue of NASCAR sponsorship. Coincidentally, motor racing sponsorship was not outlawed in the EFRD regulations, but a Pernod spokesman denies that was the reason for their failure to support the proposals.