Wine Law

322 WINE LAW Finally, Law no. 87-588 of 30 July 1987 supplemented the rules governing drinking establishments by including a ban on the broadcast of advertisements aimed at young people and in venues dedicated to sporting activities. Emphasis was placed on issuing advice for moderation in all advertisements promoting alcoholic beverages. The law also governed the advertisements’ content by prohibiting any suggestion as to a physiological or psychological benefit relating to the alcohol consumption, for instance, incentives for the consumption with references to sexuality, sport or work, or handling dangerous machinery or motor vehicles. Likewise, celebrities known to be involved in the production or distribution of alcoholic beverages could not appear in the advertisement. Finally, sponsorship by companies in the wine or spirits sector is also regulated. This was the legal situation on the eve of Law No. 91-32 of 10 January 1991, known as Loi Évin. Simultaneously, the scientific claim to wine being a “healthy and hygienic” drink, to quote Louis Pasteur, was discredited thanks to the influence of hygienism campaigns. These initially focussed on the battle against excessive and regular consumption among adults in 1950-1970, followed by the fight against consumption during pregnancy and, finally, against occasional excessive consumption among young people in 1980-1990 17 . Apart from the case of pregnant women, the hygienism message advocated moderation, notably by the 1984 prevention campaign slogan “one glass is fine, three glasses spell trouble”. Until the introduction of Loi Évin, wine retained its privileged position over other alcoholic beverages, mainly due to the distinction between fermented and distilled drinks; this law removed that distinction by categorising them all as alcoholic beverages. After frenzied parliamentary debates between opposing hygienism campaigners and advocates for the financing of cultural and sporting events, Loi Évin (Law no. 91-32 of 10 January 1991 relating to the campaign against smoking and alcoholism) was adopted in order to boost the principle of hygienism and limit the risks relating to the overconsumption of alcohol. It lays down the principle of a ban on advertising of alcoholic beverages, with a few exceptions. However, the Constitutional Council did not validate the entire bill because it allowed for the allocation of a pre-tax 10% of advertising spending in favour of health education and alcohol prevention to be overseen by joint bodies. This measure was censored because it contradicted the principle of 17 “Cover this wine that I could not drink”, The public health discourse on wine in France: towards a new hygienism? ss. dir. V. Péan & A. Doré, Sc. Po Toulouse 2018, 5 th year course “Risks, Science, Environment and Health”, p. 6.