The Polish Parliamentary Health Commission has merged two legislative bills proposing bans on alcohol advertising, restrictions on gas station sales, and limited trading hours. <\/p>\n
The Sejm Health Commission combined the review of bills from Left and Poland 2050, which propose banning alcohol advertising, prohibiting sales at gas stations, and restricting trading hours. Medical professionals dealing with the consequences of alcohol abuse assert that reduced availability decreases consumption and public disruption.<\/p>\n
Both bills were submitted to the Sejm on September 23, 2025. Following the first reading in January, both drafts were sent to the Health Commission and subsequently to an extraordinary subcommittee, before the Commission adopted a resolution for joint consideration on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n
According to WHO estimates published in 2024, average pure alcohol consumption in Poland among individuals aged 15 and older was 11.6 liters per capita, marking one of the highest rates globally. The Supreme Medical Chamber (NIL) notes that despite legal prohibitions, minors also consume alcohol.<\/p>\n
The Supreme Medical Chamber emphasizes that alcohol prices in Poland relative to earnings are among the lowest in the European Union, while rising average wages allow for increased purchasing power. The Chamber asserts that advertising significantly drives high alcohol consumption.<\/p>\n
The Left’s bill outlines a total ban on alcohol advertising and promotion, including beer, a prohibition on sales at gas stations and medical facilities, and a nationwide nighttime trading ban from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM. It also introduces age verification requirements, a ban on sales below excise and VAT tax sums, and restricts online sales to personal pickup with ID verification. Municipal permit revenues would fund medical personnel in domestic violence procedures, and the National Health Fund would receive an annual mandate to transfer 22 million PLN to the Student Sports Activities Fund.<\/p>\n
The Poland 2050 project proposes an absolute ban on public advertising for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, expanded municipal authority over hourly sales bans, and higher retail permit fees. Containers under 300 ml would be sold exclusively in glass or metal, and food products mimicking alcohol packaging or branding would be banned. Graphic health warnings would become mandatory on packaging, and volume promotions like “12+12” would be removed alongside new sanctions.<\/p>\n
Dr. Bohdan Woronowicz argues that debates over reducing alcohol availability stem from financial interests rather than medical knowledge. He notes that the term “prohibition” is intentionally invoked to evoke negative connotations akin to US history, whereas the measures merely restrict sales hours.<\/p>\n
Woronowicz highlights that resistance to these changes is funded by a wealthy lobby of alcohol producers and traders. He contrasts Poland’s prolonged debate with Lithuania’s swift actions years ago, which removed alcohol from gas stations and restricted sales to 8:00 PM following high consumption rates.<\/p>\n
Woronowicz suggests that nighttime alcohol buyers are primarily individuals struggling with addiction or youths partying mindlessly. He notes that gas station employees report nighttime customers frequenting locations primarily for alcohol rather than fuel.<\/p>\n
Public health experts like Dr. Bogus\u0142awa Bukowska point out that modern marketing extends beyond classical advertising into digital media, mass events, and sponsorships, normalizing alcohol consumption and associating it with attractive lifestyles among youth.<\/p>\n
Dr. Piotr Lewandowski from the Structural Research Institute notes that alcohol in Poland has become increasingly affordable due to long-term trends where prices grew slower than incomes and inflation, pushing economic accessibility to excessive levels.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Polish Parliamentary Health Commission has merged two legislative bills proposing bans on alcohol advertising, restrictions on gas station sales, and limited trading hours. Two Legislative Projects Combined The Sejm Health Commission combined the review of bills from Left and Poland 2050, which propose banning alcohol advertising, prohibiting sales at gas stations, and restricting trading […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-culture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15119"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15119\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bizonews.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}