Koert van 't Hof

For the vast majority of our customers, beer is an innocent pleasure that helps make their lives more pleasurable. And we would like it to stay that way. Naturally, selling beer is Grolsch's core business, and we aim to sell as much as possible. However, at the same time we also want to remain vigilant about the potential harmful effects of irresponsible alcohol consumption, particularly amongst teenagers, pregnant women and in traffic. Nevertheless, at Grolsch we need to live up to our responsibility, as our role is to provide thorough and accurate information and to behave in a responsible manner.

Grolsch is a strong advocate of self-regulation and enforcement. We believe that banning alcohol advertising, raising duties on beer and introducing legal restrictions on the availability of alcoholic drinks are not the best way to combat alcohol abuse. Instead, only an approach that focuses on the target group can ensure that those beer lovers who drink moderately and responsibly can continue to do so in future.

It is estimated that more than five hundred children in the Netherlands are born each year with Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). This syndrome is the result of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. In December 2016, the FAS project published the book Waanzinnige Verhalen (“Crazy Stories”). In this book, people describe what it is like to live with FAS. In various target groups, the book contributes to further increasing the recognition and awareness of FAS in the Netherlands. Grolsch contributed financially to this book and used its communication channels to raise awareness of the book. Grolsch also contributed to the documentary 'FAS een stil drama' (FAS a quiet drama). In this way, we would like to convey the message that drinking alcohol during pregnancy is an utterly irresponsible choice.