There has been a tendency to talk about low and no-alcohol products through the lens of short-term campaigns.
Dry July, Sober October, or a reset after summer. That framing misses what is actually happening in the market. Consumers are looking less at a binary decision, not drinking being good and drinking being bad. But actually understanding that moderation is a more meaningful approach.
Moderation is becoming a normal part of how people drink, not something they switch on and off. You can see that in the data.
Around 50 percent of New Zealand adults now report consuming low alcohol beverages, up from around 40 percent just a few years ago. At the same time, overall alcohol consumption continues to trend down, and the mix is shifting towards lower ABV products. That is not a category in decline. It is a category evolving.
The conversation around binge drinking is also worth grounding. While it is becoming evident that overall consumption and harmful consumption are down. The narrative we still hear in New Zealand is that we have a binge drinking culture.
Something that couldn’t be further from the truth when looking at international comparisons. Around 17.5 percent of adults report heavy episodic drinking in New Zealand, compared to an OECD average of around 27 percent. Youth hazardous drinking has been falling for some time. Those trends matter because they point in the same direction. People are not opting out. They are moderating.
What is changing on the ground reflects that. One of the more interesting developments internationally is the rise of what is being called zebra striping. Alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks on a single occasion. It is a practical, consumer-led approach to managing intake. No rules, no labels, just behaviour.
That aligns with a broader reality. Telling people not to do something has a limited impact. Giving them options tends to work better. That is where low and no alcohol products come in. They allow consumers to stay in the occasion, maintain the ritual, and manage their consumption in a way that feels normal.
More from Dylan Firth – Executive Director, Brewers Association of New Zealand, in the latest issue here
