Ginebra San Miguel Hijacks Filipino Identity to Push Alcohol

Posted on January 29, 2025 in San Miguel, Promotion, Philippines

Ginebra San Miguel, a subsidiary of San Miguel Corporation, has launched its “Kabayani Kita” campaign, portraying alcohol use as an expression of patriotism and resilience. This marketing tactic – tying national identity and social values to alcohol – follows a well-worn alcohol industry strategy of using cultural pride to normalize and promote alcohol use.

The campaign is a carefully crafted attempt to embed alcohol into national identity, creating an emotional connection between Filipino pride and Ginebra San Miguel’s brand. The message is clear: to be a true Filipino hero, you should use alcohol. This is not just misleading – it is harmful.

By framing alcohol consumption as a symbol of resilience, camaraderie, and even heroism, Ginebra San Miguel downplays the serious public health and social harms associated with alcohol. The Philippines already faces significant alcohol harm, including cancer, road traffic injuries, violence, and economic strain on families. Tying alcohol to national pride risks undermining public health efforts and discouraging necessary policy measures to reduce alcohol harm.

This campaign also echoes a broader trend in alcohol marketing: the strategic co-opting of cultural values and social causes to maintain industry profits. Just as alcohol companies have used women’s empowerment, LGBTQ+ rights, and sustainability as marketing tools, Ginebra San Miguel is now leveraging Filipino identity to push their products.

Promotion, or any marketing strategies, is Big Alcohol’s activity to drive alcohol availability and acceptability, to perpetuate the alcohol norm, and to place alcohol at the center of people’s thoughts and preferences, communities’ practices, and societies’ customs. The focus of this DUBIOUS FIVE strategy is the people and their beliefs about alcohol products, the public and their attitudes about and behavior around alcohol products, and the consumers and how much, how often they buy and consume alcohol brands.

Source:
https://entertainment.inquirer.net/594594/ginebra-san-miguel-launches-kabayani-kita-campaign

alcohol marketing
Back to top