OZEMPIC: BIG TROUBLE FOR THE BOOZE INDUSTRY. “In the US, the sector’s most important market, alcohol consumption per person fell 3 per cent last year in the biggest drop since the prohibition era a century ago, according to research by Bernstein. Drinking is now languishing at its lowest level since 1962, down 20 per cent on its 1980s peak. . . . Studies show that weight-loss and diabetes drugs, such as Wegovy and Ozempic, could cut opioid and alcohol abuse up to half. . . . He added that social media was making young people more focused on how they look and behave, which acted as a further deterrent to heavy drinking because of its weight-gain effects.”

With my distilled spirits class on a field trip to a liquor distributor, our host said that they’re really feeling the “Ozempic effect.” Though he also echoed this statement: “We suspect Gen Z’s relatively low absolute spend on alcohol has more to do with the group’s lower earnings profile.”

This article does miss that many players in the industry are also turning to cannabis products in the hopes of future growth; I don’t know how that will work out for them.