2021 DRINK RESPONSIBLY

The latest episode of the On & Off Podcast focused on responsible sales and consumption . Steve Schmidt , VP of Public Policy and Communications for NABCA , joined Editors Kyle Swartz and Melissa Dowling for the discussion .

This Q & A is an excerpt of that conversation . You can listen to the entire On & Off episode after April 30 , or the full podcast series anytime , at BeverageDynamics . com / Insider .

BD : The rise of digital delivery , led by businesses like Drizly , grew exponentially during the pandemic , as consumers wary of visiting stores ordered online and had product delivered or picked it up curbside . What are your thoughts regarding safety , especially when it comes to training delivery drivers to recognize underage consumers or intoxicated consumers ? SS : Let me address the change first . I ’ ve heard an industry observer say what we ’ ve experienced in the past year is 20 years of growth and activity changing our systems , especially in e-commerce . So it ’ s been rapid change , and we don ’ t typically see that in marketplace regulation . It ’ s put a tremendous amount of pressure on those who figure out balancing consumer demands with consumer and public safety . It ’ s on that side that we see a challenge expressing itself .

When all these things change , no one really thought about what resources are law enforcement will need , and what training we ’ ll need to keep the public safe . There ’ s a mindset of saying ‘ this is what consumers want ’ and ‘ this is the only way we can get the product into the market ’, but unfortunately there wasn ’ t a lot of thought given to the pressure put on people who ensure safety . There ’ s some good training out there , but even for those who make their living in training , they were struggling to meet significant demand .

We ’ re still in the stage of catching up , and I ’ ve seen some great materials out there about how to check IDs when someone is wearing a mask . I ’ ve seen good training on helping people who are delivering product ( who never had to think about this before ). That ’ s the population we need to spend time thinking about .

Just think about the issue of checking IDs . There are a lot of delivery people who were trained previously , but the sheer volume that they ’ re dealing with , and the pressure of that volume , is something brick-and-mortar retailers are used to . But there could be compli-

The Responsible Consumption episode of On & Off will be available April 30 . The preceding 9 episodes are now available , with topics ranging from cannabis beverages to hard seltzers

to whiskey trends . Download them using your

favorite podcast platform , or at BeverageDynamics . com / insider !

Steve Schmidt , VP of Public Policy and Communications for NABCA

ance issues with deliveries if those companies aren ’ t used to the volume . I think it ’ s doable and possible to ensure compliance , but it takes resources .

BD : The state of Utah is doing a test with mobile driver ’ s licenses . Is that something that ’ s helpful or not ? SS : This is an emerging technology and area that we are just getting up to speed with . I ’ ve had conversations with about 6-12 months with a group that involves technology providers , manufacturers , users . There hasn ’ t been a great deal of attention paid to this , because while the idea of mobile driver ’ s licenses has been out there for a while , the tech isn ’ t widespread .

Most of the concern early on was making sure it was secure . Now they ’ re looking at the users , and there ’ s no question retailers in age-restricted product areas and law enforcement will be key users and need to learn about it . We ’ re excited at NABCA , because we ’ ve been on top of this early , and we ’ re having conversations in the next several months with our members to make sure they know it ’ s coming . Utah and Iowa will have active programs , and there will be more .

4 Drink Responsibly 2021