Jamie Lucas
Even though the amount of underage drinking in the US has gone
down by almost 40 percent over the past 20 years, there is still a
long way to go. The legal drinking age in the US is 21. The biggest
problem in terms of underage access is non-commercial access -
where an underage consumer gets liquor from home or from a
friend who is over 21. Falsified identification is another major issue
- for underage consumers who choose to drink, a beer can be just
a fake ID away.
OPERATION TEEN PR OOF: HOW HEINEKEN USA HELPS ALCOHOL RETAILERS RECOGNIZE FAKE IDs
District Attorneyjeanine Pirro of Westchester
County, New York, decided to get actively
involved in the issue of underage drinking,
following the death of a teenager in the coun
ty in circumstances that involved alcohol
consumption. Heineken USA contacted her
as the company had been looking for ways
to get more actively involved in combating
the problem.
'We called the District Attorney's office,'
explains Jamie Lucas, Director Corporate
Affairs of Heineken USA, and said, 'We're
interested in what you're doing and would
like to speak to you about possibly getting
involved in a joint project.'
After holding a forum on the issue, the
District Attorney contacted Heineken USA
about a plan to buy and distribute security
laminate verifiers, devices that can check
whether an ID is false. 'The idea was to buy
enough of these verifiers to distribute them
to every alcohol retailer in the county', he
continues, 'together with a sticker that said
'We card because we care'. Heineken USA
agreed, split the cost with its local whole
salers and bought 2,500 verifiers.
Heineken USA kept 400 for distribution to
local police departments, while the District
Attorney's office arranged forthe remaining
2,100 verifiers to be given out to the county's
alcohol retailers. Heineken USA won an award
for its support of this programme in October
2003, when it was presented with the 'Part
ners for Safety Award for Underage Drinking
Programs'the New York Governor's Highway
Safety Committee. District Attorney Pirro
received a Certificate of Commendation from
the National Commission Against Drunk
Driving for her efforts.
'With today's technology, you can make an
ID that looks exactly like the original,' Lucas
says. 'This verifier gives the responsible
retailer in NewYorkState a fighting chance
to identify these fake IDs.'
Active promotion of responsible alcohol consumption
performance of Heineken world-wide,
OB YES 83
B NO 17
35
