Kestrel Super Strength Lager (24 x 500ml Cans)

Product Information

David Poley, its Chief Executive says: "There's no reason really to suppose that these drinks don't have a market amongst responsible adult drinkers. Of the 4,000 individuals that Thames Reach worked with in 2005, 47% were found to have an alcohol misuse problem and around 800 individuals were addicted to super strength lagers and ciders. The three-litre bottle contains 24 units of alcohol – 10 units more than the recommended weekly amount for an adult. “I only buy it if I’ve got a little bit of money,” explains Zac, who is 42 and has been homeless since he was 15. Some days he will drink two or three bottles. “They give me such a headache. But if I’ve got money I’ll buy a normal drink.” There's four people in this hostel we're sitting in who are about to die and it's directly because of super strength lager".

A recent survey of deaths among Thames Reach’s hostel residents found that 10 out of the 16 in the past year were directly attributable to super-strength drinks. The previous year, 11 out of 14 deaths were blamed on the drinks. They are the kind of statistics that, ahead of the budget, have led the Alcohol Health Alliance UK, a group of more than 50 non-governmental organisations, to call for a rise in duty on high-strength ciders as an encouragement to switch to weaker – and cheaper – products. Thames Reach's frontline services say they have considerable evidence of the rapid deterioration in health caused by super strength alcohol. Inbev, who manufacture "Tennents Super", have just announced that they are reducing the size of their cans. The main popular super strength lagers at 9%, all brewed by major drinks companies, include Tennent's Super, Carlsberg Special Brew, Skol Super and Kestrel Super. In April 2008 InBev UK announced that after careful consideration they would no longer be producing Tennent's Super in 500ml cans - and they will be moving to 440ml in the first quarter of 2008.Yes, they are also consumed by people with alcohol dependency problems - that does not necessarily mean that they are irresponsibly marketed".

Six years ago, the government increased the duty on super-strength lagers. The consumption of super-strength beer fell by a quarter as a result. But, because of resistance from cider manufacturers, the government did not extend the rise to super-strength ciders. The social side effects of super strength are of such concern to Westminster and Ealing Councils that they have persuaded large supermarkets to remove these drinks from their shelves. In the Commons an Early Day Motion tabled by Battersea MP Martin Linton is calling on the Government to curb the sale of super strength lagers by taxing them at a higher rate.Thames Reach is calling for a new 6% strength ceiling on the alcohol content for canned and bottled super strength lagers and ciders. It says, "Tennent's Super is brewed to be enjoyed in moderation. It is the individuals responsibility to monitor the number of units of alcohol that they drink." The World Health Organisation claims that “a large body of literature has found raising the price of alcohol to be effective in reducing harmful use of alcohol among drinkers”.