Country Analysis 2: preliminary insights

With respect to country analysis 2 we did a quick preliminary review of the seminar and training course material related to non-formal education, ie adult wine lovers and beginners.

The leading Austrian Wine Academy as a non-profit organization endorses the philosophy that ‘the more a country develops wine knowledge and culture, the more likely it is that this particular nation will expect and consume high quality wines’.

Without any deeper analysis so far, it seems to be that:

-        The training offers of the Austrian Wine Academy are mainly focused on historical, cultural and heritage aspects, sharing an interest in wine and food in the history, the varieties and the quality of Austrian wines. Topics of the Basic seminar are Austrian wine and its history within the famous wine areas, wine sensorik and wine presentation, tasting, table- and drink culture, but also aspects of viniculture, methods of vinification as well as the Austrian wine law.

-        That our target group (wine lovers and beginners) in view of trainers does not represent an endangered group with respect to misuse of wine (alcoholism).

-        The other aspects of RESDRI’s understanding what responsible drinking also means, namely health and prevention could not explicitly identified in the course material so far. We have to discuss it with our interview partners in detail as alcohol is a drug and drinking of alcohol including wine is part of our culture.

-        In countries with average income corresponding to approximately half of the world population is - according to WHO – alcohol misuse the largest risk factor of loss of years of life by illness and disability. However, the WHO is the only organ for global health to release legal binding conventions as this organization did – in the last 60 years – for breaking off epidemic diseases and tobacco consumption. This is a missed opportunity with respect to alcoholism to support countries in establishing their own legal basis.

In this respect we would like to draw your attention to a new (old) approach of alcohol prevention not aimed at zero alcohol consumption. The modern prevention training is focused on some kind of ‘controlled drinking’ by the so-called ‘droplet therapy’. Consumption reduction is standard in Great Britain and several times a year courses are offered in Germany, Austria and Switzerland; it seems to be a promising therapy complementing other established ones. Maybe RESDRI could consider this “controlled drinking” therapy under prevention http://www.spiegel.de/gesundheit/diagnose/alcoholentzug-kontrolliertes-trinken-ist besser-als-abstnenz-a-844209.html and others mentioned there.