Japan launches contest to encourage its youth to drink more alcohol and boost economy

Japan's government has initiated a countrywide competition seeking suggestions on ways to encourage people to drink more as it moves to tackle the decline in alcohol tax revenues. According to The Guardian report, the National Tax Agency (NTA) has started the 'Sake Viva!' campaign asking individuals from ages 20 to 39 to submit ideas to increase the consumption of alcoholic beverages, which has declined due to lifestyle changes during the Coronavirus pandemic, especially among young people. 

The contest, which is open until September 9, requests "new products and designs" in addition to strategies to encourage home drinking. The local website JiJi.com reported that entrants are even advised to explore metaverse-based sales techniques. Furthermore, the competition's finalists would be invited to a lavish awards event in Tokyo on November 10. Japan's NTA office announced that it will support the commercialisation of the winner's ideas, as per the report.  

The average annual alcohol consumption in Japan has decreased in 2020

According to the NTA, the average annual alcohol consumption in Japan has decreased from 100 litres per person in the year 1995 to 75 litres in 2020. The decline in alcohol sales has hurt Japan's budget, which is already witnessing a shortfall of over 48 trillion Japanese yen (£290 billion). 

In 2020, alcohol-related taxes contributed 1.7% of Japan's total tax revenue, dropping from 3% in 2011 and 5% in 1980. The NTA revealed earlier this month that the total revenue collected from alcohol taxes in the 2020 fiscal year decreased by over 110 billion to 1.1 trillion Japanese Yen compared to 2019. It was reportedly the largest decrease in alcohol tax revenue in 31 years.  

The program, according to Japan's health ministry, aims to encourage people to only consume "the appropriate amount of alcohol" in order to prevent health problems, The Sun reported.  

In addition to this, beer consumption fell significantly, with sales volume falling 20% to less than 1.8 billion litres. According to the Kirin brewery, which produces Ichiban Shibori and Kirin lager, the average person in Japan consumed roughly 55 bottles of beer in 2020, a 9.1% decrease from the previous year, The Guardian reported.  

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