Turkey maintains position in alcohol consumption: OECD report

ISTANBUL

Turkey has finished second from last again among 44 countries in terms of adult alcohol consumption, effectively maintaining its position over the past 12 years, according to an Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) health report.

Adults in Turkey consumed approximately 1.6 liters of alcohol per capita in 2012, with no considerable change between the years 2000 and 2012, the Nov. 4 Health at a Glance 2015 report suggested. The lowest alcohol consumption per adult was recorded in Indonesia, which was respectively followed by Turkey, India and Israel.

Alcohol consumption stands at 8.9 liters per adult on average across OECD countries, with the Czech Republic, Estonia, Austria and Lithuania reporting the highest alcohol consumption rates at 11.5 liters or more per adult in 2013, the report added.

“Although average alcohol consumption has gradually fallen in many OECD countries since 2000, it has risen in Poland, Sweden and Norway, as well as in Latvia, Lithuania and the Russian Federation,” the report said.

According to World Health Organization (WHO) numbers, some 63 percent of alcohol consumers in Turkey only drink beer while 8.6 percent only drink wine.