‘Dry January’ sees alcohol sales halved in UK

Supermarket alcohol sales have plummeted in the UK this month as more people than ever seem to be shunning booze for ‘Dry January’.

Dry January is “gaining momentum”, according to the company behind the figures (Photo: Wiki)

An average of nearly £1 in every £10 spent in British supermarkets last year was on alcohol, but so far in January this has dropped to just 46p.

Meanwhile, overall drinks sales in just the first two weeks of January are well above the monthly average for 2015, suggesting that more shoppers than ever have swapped alcohol for juices and soft drinks.

Nearly 40% of the money spent in British supermarkets this month has been on drinks, while the average for the whole of last year was around 30%.

Kim Ludlow of price comparison site MySupermarket, which compiled the figures, said that while January is usually considered a “healthy month”, the trend of people turning away from alcohol at the beginning of the New Year is “gaining momentum”.

Alcohol Concern, the charity behind the Dry January campaign, claim that over 2 million people are taking part this year.

But health experts have warned that the campaign could have the opposite effect of what it intends, as people run the risk of binging after their period of abstinence is finished.