Warnings on liquor bottles are getting stronger. Liquor companies must include phrases or images alerting people to the dangers of drunk driving on bottles starting in Nov. Currently, bottles carry text saying excessive drinking is harmful to health, and now they will also warn about traffic crashes.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Health Promotion Institute said on the 8th they revised the enforcement rules and notice of the National Health Promotion Act to include these changes. A ministry official said, "We will raise awareness by informing people that alcohol, beyond being a simple preference food, can affect personal health and public safety."
Currently, liquor companies print phrases on bottles stating that heavy drinking is harmful to health or that drinking during pregnancy is dangerous. Typical examples include "Excessive drinking causes liver cancer and stomach cancer." Going forward, they must also add phrases or images that ban drunk driving. To convey the risk more intuitively, the font size will be larger and the images will be shown in white, black, and red.
The rule applies to liquor released from factories or declared for import on or after Mar. 19. However, products released or declared for import before Nov. 9 may be sold on the market until May 8 next year. Major advanced countries such as the United States, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Italy also place warning phrases on liquor bottles. They say drinking during pregnancy or drunk driving is dangerous.