Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy

The Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy, widely known by its Dutch acronym STAP (Stichting Nederlands Instituut voor Alcoholbeleid STAP), is an independent Dutch knowledge institute dedicated to effective alcohol policy and to public awareness of the health risks of alcohol. It operates as a non-profit foundation (stichting) rather than a commercial company, and it is not financed by government subsidies; instead it relies on support from funds and on donations from private individuals. Its work combines public information, monitoring of the alcohol industry's self-regulation, and lobbying for stricter government rules. STAP was founded in 1994 under the name Stichting Alcoholpreventie (Foundation for Alcohol Prevention). The name was later changed to Het Nederlands Instituut voor Alcoholbeleid STAP. The Dutch Wikipedia entry states that the organisation was founded in 2002 by Wim van Dalen, a former policy officer for health promotion and disease prevention, while also noting the 1994 founding under the earlier name; the two dates reflect the original foundation and a later re-founding or renaming. STAP's focus lies mainly on reducing alcohol use by young people. In 2008, research by STAP together with the University of Twente showed that it was easy for young people under 16 to obtain alcoholic drinks. That same year STAP called on supermarkets to stop selling alcoholic mixed drinks, and a year later it campaigned against the low stunt prices of crates of beer in supermarkets. In 2006 STAP drew up guidelines that municipalities could use when dealing with drinking sheds (drankketen), and in 2011 it proposed lowering the alcohol percentage of pilsner beer as a way to reduce consumption. On its website STAP publishes news, figures, and analyses of Dutch and European alcohol policy. It reports on topics such as per-capita alcohol consumption, age limits, the Alcohol Act, excise duty rates, minimum unit pricing (MUP), alcohol marketing rules, and EU-level policy. It also maintains EUCAM, a project on alcohol marketing in Europe, and provides links and publications for policymakers, researchers, and the public. The organisation describes Dutch alcohol policy as aiming for no alcohol consumption under the age of 18, no alcohol during pregnancy, less excessive and heavy drinking, and greater awareness of one's own drinking behaviour and its effects, using six kinds of policy instruments: the Alcohol Act, rules on alcohol advertising, penalties for driving while intoxicated, taxation, education and prevention, and treatment and rehabilitation. STAP is related in subject matter to STIVA, which has similar objectives but was set up from within the alcohol industry; both organisations identify the same problems but have different views on the solution. As a knowledge institute and advocacy organisation, STAP is not a manufacturer, retailer, or trademarked consumer product, but it functions as a recognised brand-like organisation in the Dutch and European alcohol-policy field.

STAP was founded in 1994 under the name Stichting Alcoholpreventie (Foundation for Alcohol Prevention). The Dutch Wikipedia entry also states that the organisation was founded in 2002 by Wim van Dalen, a former policy officer for health promotion and disease prevention; the name was later changed to Het Nederlands Instituut voor Alcoholbeleid STAP. The organisation presents itself as an independent knowledge institute working for effective alcohol policy and for public awareness of the health risks of alcohol. STAP's method combines informing the public about the risks of alcoholic drinks, monitoring whether the alcohol industry complies with its own self-regulation, and lobbying for stricter government rules. Its focus lies mainly on reducing alcohol use by young people. In 2006 STAP drew up guidelines that municipalities could use when dealing with drinking sheds (drankketen). In 2008, research by STAP together with the University of Twente showed that it was easy for young people under 16 to obtain alcoholic drinks. That same year STAP called on supermarkets to stop selling alcoholic mixed drinks, and a year later it campaigned against the low stunt prices of crates of beer in supermarkets. In 2011, as part of efforts to reduce alcohol consumption, STAP proposed lowering the alcohol percentage of pilsner beer. STAP is not financed by government subsidies but with support from funds and donations from private individuals. It is related in subject matter to STIVA, which has similar objectives but was set up from within the alcohol industry; both organisations identify the same problems but have different views on the solution. On its website STAP publishes news, figures, and analyses of Dutch and European alcohol policy. It reports on per-capita alcohol consumption, age limits, the Alcohol Act, excise duty rates, minimum unit pricing (MUP), alcohol marketing rules, and EU-level policy, and it maintains EUCAM, a project on alcohol marketing in Europe. It describes Dutch alcohol policy as aiming for no alcohol consumption under the age of 18, no alcohol during pregnancy, less excessive and heavy alcohol use, and greater awareness of one's own drinking behaviour and its effects, using six kinds of policy instruments: the Alcohol Act, rules on alcohol advertising, penalties for driving while intoxicated, taxation, education and prevention, and treatment and rehabilitation. It notes that the first adopted alcohol policy memorandum (Alcohol en Samenleving) dates from 1986, followed by the Alcoholnota, the Hoofdlijnenbrief alcoholbeleid of 20 November 2007, and the National Prevention Agreement launched on 23 November 2018. On European policy, STAP describes Europe as having the highest proportion of drinkers in the world and the highest levels of alcohol consumption per capita, and it traces the development of EU alcohol strategy, including the Council recommendation of 2001 on alcohol and young people and the EU Alcohol Strategy 2006-2012.

• 2011

  STAP proposed lowering the alcohol percentage of pilsner beer to reduce alcohol consumption.

• 2009

  STAP campaigned against low stunt prices of crates of beer in supermarkets.

• 2008

  Research by STAP and the University of Twente showed it was easy for young people under 16 to obtain alcoholic drinks; STAP called on supermarkets to stop selling alcoholic mixed drinks.

• 2006

  STAP drew up guidelines for municipalities on dealing with drinking sheds (drankketen).

• 2002

  Dutch Wikipedia states the organisation was founded by Wim van Dalen; the name was later changed to Het Nederlands Instituut voor Alcoholbeleid STAP.

• 1994

  Founded under the name Stichting Alcoholpreventie (Foundation for Alcohol Prevention).

Independent, non-government-funded knowledge institute and advocacy organisation for effective alcohol policy and public awareness of alcohol-related health risks.

• STAP publications

  Reports, figures, and analyses on Dutch and European alcohol policy.

• EUCAM

  A project on alcohol marketing in Europe maintained by STAP.

1. 1Homestap.nl
2. 2Alcohol marketingstap.nl
3. 3Dutch alcohol policystap.nl
4. 4European alcohol policystap.nl
5. 5Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policywikidata.org
6. 6Stichting Nederlands Instituut voor Alcoholbeleid STAPnl.wikipedia.org