The Turks’ moderate drinking habits (13 litres of beer per capita) mean alcohol has a fairly low weight in the consumer price index. The impact of a tax hike on tobacco – which the government appears to be forgoing this year – would have been much greater, since around half of male Turks smoke.

The reason why the Northern Territory government is so keen to see these vodka mixes disappear is that it fears the drink could aggravate alcohol abuse especially among its Aborigines. The Northern Territory is home to only 220,000 people, while Australia has 22.5 million inhabitants. However, over 30 percent of the Northern Territory’s population is Aboriginal.

Sometimes you can only shake your head in wonder over the blatant nonsense some strategic planning departments produce.

Because of the strong Aussie dollar, the interest in Foster’s beer and wine units seems to be waning. That may buy Foster’s extra time and extend the shelf-life of its beer and wine units as independents once the split has been completed.

We have always admired Australia’s brewers for their innovation drive. No year went by without brewers launching new brands. Low-carb beers have been all the rage for the past six years since Pure Blonde by CUB, the domestic beer unit of the Foster’s Group, hit the market. In 2009, the low-carb beer segment – if you want to call it that – represented some AUD 600 million in sales and 10 percent of all beer sold.

In theory, Diageo is right: why shouldn’t you have a two-litre box of a spirit mix sitting in your fridge waiting to be cracked open and shared by you and your friends? Diageo Australia Managing Director Tim Salt said the premium vodka and orange or cranberry juice mix had a crisp and tart taste and was aimed at adults aged 30-plus who entertained at home.

Foster’s, the largest alcoholic beverage maker in Australia, said in May that it planned to list its beer and wine operations separately so that they could each develop their own corporate strategies.

The Foundation concludes that higher rates of alcohol taxation and more severe restrictions on alcohol advertising and sponsorship are crucial in tackling the country’s problems arising from excessive alcohol consumption.

Asahi Breweries, hotly tipped as a buyer of Foster’s beer business, raised a few eyebrows when it announced on 26 August 2010 that it will acquire P&N Beverages, the third-largest firm in beverage sales in Australia, for AUD 364 million (EUR 259 million) through Asahi Holdings (Australia).

"We won’t be commenting on media rumour or speculation," CEO Ian Johnston said, after reporting an AUD 464.4 million annual loss, which stemmed from a previously flagged AUD 1.3 billion writedown of the value of the group’s troublesome wine division.