Dive Brief:
- A British researcher has developed Alcarelle, an alternative to alcohol that offers the same buzz but without the hangover side effects the next day, Chicago Tribune reported.
- Public health advocates position the invention as a way to limit alcoholism and prevent damage to bodily organs from consuming alcohol.
- The researcher has dubbed the product an "alcosynth" but told the Chicago Tribune that it has yet to undergo a regulatory or scientific peer review.
Dive Insight:
Alcohol abuse has long been a concern for consumers and public health advocates, and alcoholic beverage manufacturers have had to combat regulatory and transparency challenges as a result. Now that a hangover-less alcohol could eventually reach the market, manufacturers may have to devise other solutions to fight the bias and stigma many hold against the alcohol industry.
Earlier this year, the U.K. passed guidelines for alcohol consumption that were even more severe than the U.S. 2015 Dietary Guidelines. In response, several manufacturers joined together to fund the Alcohol Information Partnership to provide the other side in the country’s alcohol debate, which they say has become “increasingly imbalanced and characterized by poor representation of the evidence,” the partnership’s director-general Dave Roberts told The Wall Street Journal.
One potential solution is for alcoholic beverage manufacturers to diversify into low- or non-alcoholic beverages. In July, Diageo-backed accelerator Distill Ventures acquired a minority stake in U.K.-based non-alcoholic spirits producer Seedlip. That same month, Anheuser-Busch InBev predicted low- and non-alcoholic beer would comprise 20% of the company's sales by the end of 2025.
Experts also speculate that AB InBev could potentially acquire Coca-Cola, according to a recent Reuters report on post-SABMiller deals for the beer goliath. That could have an enormous impact on both the brewer's beverage portfolio and the global industry, with implications for distribution, branding and R&D capabilities.