Those who persist in pushing the stereotype of the drunken Irish will be given pause for thought by the latest figures on the consumption of alcohol in Ireland.
For the first time since the 1980s when the country was a lot poorer than it is today and drink considerably more expensive relatively, alcohol consumption has fallen significantly.
According to analysis carried out for the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI) by retired economics professor Tony Foley, consumption of alcohol per adult in Ireland dropped below 10 litres of pure alcohol per adult per year for the first time since 1987. An adult is defined for the purposes of alcohol consumption as anybody over the age of 15.
In 2023 the figure was 9.96 litres, a fall of 1.5 per cent on the previous year. The differences year on year are not significant, but the trend is: Irish people are drinking on average almost one-third – some 31 per cent – less alcohol than they did in 2001.
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Alcohol consumption in Ireland soared during the heady years of the Celtic Tiger when those born between 1965 and 1975 came of age at a time of increased prosperity and opportunity.
Consumption went from 10 litres at the start of the decade to 14 litres by the end of it and finally peaked at 14.41 litres per adult per year in 2001. The Government responded by increasing excise duty on spirits and consumption started to fall. By the end of the decade it was down to close to 11 litres per person and by 2020 to 10 litres per person.
Far from being the booziest people in Europe as reputations might suggest, Irish consumption of alcohol is close to the EU norm of 9.8 litres and less than countries such as Portugal, France and Germany.
Ireland is not alone in seeing consumption fall, though it is an outlier in terms of the extent of the fall. Alcohol consumption in Europe as a whole went from 12.7 litres in 1980 to 9.8 litres in 2020. In the UK they call 2004 the year of “peak booze” when alcohol consumption peaked.
“We’re a long way from ‘Gin Lane’. These days Britain isn’t even in the top 10 booziest nations in Europe,” wrote author Henry Jeffreys in the Spectator. The UK, with a drinking culture similar to our own, is now below the European norm for alcohol consumption.
The reasons for this decline have been much debated and are multifaceted. We live in a much more health-conscious world. Smoking, thanks in part to the ban first introduced by then minister for health, now Tánaiste, Micheál Martin in 2004, has become more marginalised. Gyms are thriving. The public is bombarded with public health messages and the internet is awash with wellness solutions.
Alcohol is now separated from other products in shops and supermarkets and a minimum price unit has been brought in.
The decline in consumption is being driven by young people under the age of 30 who do not have the same proclivities towards boozing that previous generations have. Young Irish people are like the strait-laced daughter character in the BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous who is mortified by her mother’s boozy antics.
The number of teetotallers in the 15-24-year-old bracket went from 17 per cent in 2007 to 30 per cent in 2022, according to the Health Research Board. Teenagers are also drinking later in life. In 1998, 83 per cent of 15 year olds had tasted alcohol, in 2018 it was just 31 per cent.
The older generations are drinking less too. One of the factors driving lower consumption in alcohol is that as people age, they tend to drink less. The median age of the Irish population was 31.5 in 2000 and is now 38.2 and getting older as the birth rate declines.
There has been a decline in drinking frequency among 35-44 year olds. Just over half (51 per cent) of drinkers in this age group drink at least once a week, with 26 per cent drinking multiple times a week. This compares with 60 per cent and 36 per cent respectively in 2021. The reasons for these dramatic fall-offs are unclear, but may be related to the cost-of-living increases of recent years.
Foley believes a greater consciousness about health is the predominant factor in decreased alcohol consumption along with the drink-driving laws and a less tolerant attitude to drunkenness. Demographics is also a factor.
“When those who came of age 30 years ago, there was a lot of what publicans called ‘proper drinkers’ around – the type of person who could go in and have 10 pints,” he said.
‘People are more image-conscious now. I know a lot of lads who are really into their sports and wouldn’t touch a drop’
— Darragh McDonnell (21)
“As you grow older, you decrease your consumption and the younger generation are much more health-orientated.”
Though people are significantly richer on paper than they were in 25 years ago, the cost of housing is a factor in why young people are drinking less, he believes.
Senior clinical psychologist Dr Anne Kehoe said there are many reasons behind the decline in alcohol consumption. The greater prevalence of drugs other than alcohol – most notably MDMA, better known as ecstasy, cocaine and cannabis – is one factor.
By the age of 20, 60 per cent of Irish people have tried cannabis. The housing crisis means a lot more young people are living at home a lot longer and remain under the control of their parents who are also drinking less. There is also a loosening in the centrality of alcohol to every major event in Ireland, she believes.
“It is not the right of passage that it used to be. When we were young, I didn’t know anybody who didn’t have that initiation into alcohol. It was a normal thing then. Now that’s not the case,” she said.
[ How Ireland drinks now: Teetotallers, wine-o’clockers and ex-drinkersOpens in new window ]
“It’s relatively quick for an evolution of culture. The changes are more pronounced here in Ireland as we have more of an issue with alcohol. There is a huge shift already. Will it continue at the same rate? Immigration is a factor as some immigrants are coming from a different culture.
“There is a normalisation of non-drinking too. You see ads for ‘0.0′ [zero alcohol] products on the back of buses. That wouldn’t have been economically viable 20 years ago,” she said.
The smartphone acts both as an incentive to drink less and also as a deterrent. Young people want to look well on Instagram and TikTok. The generations that didn’t grow up in the era of the smartphones are continually thankful that their drunken antics weren’t recorded for posterity.
“People are more image-conscious now. I know a lot of lads who are really into their sports and wouldn’t touch a drop,” said Darragh McDonnell (21), a marketing and public relations student at Dundalk Institute of Technology (DKIT).
“Women, because of social media, tend to be more conscious of their image. The last thing on their minds is going out drinking all the time. If you are going out and getting drunk, it can be damaging to your image too.”
UCD history and politics student Ciaran McDermott says his father used to run pool nights at the bar in the university.
“He said the nights were great craic. It was a great draw for students. There is a bar in UCD now. By the sounds of it, it is not as popular as the bar was back in his day. I would say that we drink less than my father’s generation. It wouldn’t be as hectic,” he said.
Cost is also a significant factor for all generations but especially for those who don’t have the disposable income of their older peers.
“With the price of drink, they [young people] wait for one big night and splurge on drink,” said McDermott.
“Rarely, if ever, do I go for a drink on my own, so the night gets progressively more expensive buying rounds and then it’s topped off paying for food and potentially a very pricey taxi home as the bus to the village isn’t 24 hours.
“I feel the older generation have a bit more to spend on a night out.”
Reader callout: How has your alcohol consumption changed?
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