Alcohol Responsibility - Brown-Forman

Creating a Responsible Drinking Culture

We believe that when we take a moment and pause, we will make the best decisions for ourselves, for the company, and for our communities.

We are actively creating a responsible drinking culture where we reduce alcohol-related harm, promote respectful consumption, and practice responsible marketing.

We launched an internal campaign called Pause to elevate responsibility, raise awareness, and inspire more action from our employees. It encourages and empowers everyone at Brown-Forman and our partners to pause, consider, and make responsible decisions around alcohol. The Pause campaign is focused on people and their holistic health and wellness.

The Pause campaign has been enthusiastically embraced by our employees around the globe, from the U.S. to Greece, Slovenia, Russia, and South Africa.

Dani Hepperlin, Director, eCommerce – USA & Canada Brown-Forman

“Pause. A great mantra. It allows me to be thoughtful on how much I want to consume, but more importantly, how I want to feel the next day. I love how society is shifting from excessive consumption to moderation and more importantly, how Brown-Forman is proactive and supportive, so everyone can live their best life.”

Risa Sepkowski, Portfolio Field Marketing Manager at Brown-Forman

“Pause is a simple word that acts as a reminder to be responsible and make good decisions, no matter the situation. Working in the beverage alcohol industry is fun and exciting, but it’s important that we set the example. Pause to consider if you really need that next drink at a party with friends. Pause to eat or have a glass of water. Pause to ensure you have a safe ride home. Pause is a great way to have that constant reminder to act responsibly in situations involving alcohol.”

New Hampshire Mocktail Week

For our Mocktail Week Program, we partnered with bars in New Hampshire to encourage non-alcoholic alternatives, and bar patrons voted for their favorites on social media.

Chambord and Alteristic -Bystander Intervention Training

In 2018, Chambord announced its partnership with Alteristic, a national organization dedicated to reducing power-based personal violence, to provide a series of bystander intervention training workshops for the bartending community and our own employees.

#TomaloConCalma

To amplify the Pause campaign with our Spanish speaking consumers, our Latin America Region colleagues created #TomaloConCalma, which translates in English to “Take It Easy.” Like Pause, #TomaloConCalma is rooted in the growing trends around mindfulness and wellness, and continues to convey an empowering message that employees can and will make the right decisions.

Employee Education

Providing employee education ensures that we continue to uphold our values around alcohol responsibility. We use Think and Drink Tavern, an interactive online simulation that provides tips on factors that lead to intoxication, the signs that someone may be over the limit, and how best to intervene when someone has over consumed. It also provides facts about alcohol and the body, as well as how to identify problem drinking.

In addition to our online education program, the launch of the Pause campaign has provided positive experiences for our employees aimed to empower and equip them to continue cultivating a responsible drinking culture within their respective roles and communities.

Think and Drink Tavern displayed on a computer monitor

Nutritional content is important to our consumers, so we launched nutrition.brown-forman.com to provide more accessible nutrition information on our products.