Diageo is Proud to Support The Century Council's Anti-Underage Drinking Program in Park City, Utah

Multimedia Program Encourages Kids to Say "YES" to a Healthy Lifestyle and "NO" to Underage Drinking

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Jan 22, 2010, 02:39 ET

PARK CITY, Utah, Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Adolescents identify their parents as their primary source of obtaining alcohol, and parents are also the leading influence in a child's decision whether or not to drink. Seventy-four percent of youth report parents as the leading influence in their decision to drink or not to drink according to the 2008 Roper Youth Report. That is why Diageo, the world's leading spirits, wine and beer company is proud to support The Century Council's 'Ask, Listen, Learn: Kids and Alcohol Don't Mix' program held today and tomorrow at the US Snowboarding Grand Prix in Park City, Utah. Century Council programs encourage parents to have an ongoing dialogue with their kids about the dangers of alcohol, and provides effective resources to start the conversation.

"Diageo is proud to support The Century Council's 'Ask, Listen, Learn: Kids and Alcohol Don't Mix' program to empower parents to speak freely and effectively with their children in order to prevent underage drinking," said Stephenie Shah, Senior Director State Government Relations, Diageo North America. "Diageo has a zero tolerance policy towards underage drinking and intends for our beverages to be enjoyed by adults of legal drinking age."

The Century Council, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to fighting drunk driving and underage drinking, developed Ask, Listen, Learn: Kids and Alcohol Don't Mix to provide parents with information and strategies to help facilitate conversations with their middle school-aged kids about the dangers of underage drinking. Ask, Listen, Learn is a creative, multimedia program designed by a team of educators and psychologists specializing in middle school-aged students.

Utah's rates of underage drinking are consistently the lowest in the country and continue to drop, according to statistics provided by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health for the past two reporting periods. Examining youth aged 12-20, the statistics show past month underage drinking at 17% between 2006-2007 which illustrated a drop of 4% from the previous reporting period. This compares to a national underage past month drinking rate of 28% for both periods. According to research by The Century Council, 65% of teens get the alcohol they consume from family and friends.

Diageo is a founding member and major supporter of The Century Council and joins them in their commitment to developing programs eliminating drunk driving and underage drinking. These programs include 'Ask, Listen, Learn,' 'Parents, You're Not Done Yet' and 'Girl Talk'. The Century Council also works with a broad array of education and prevention professionals on alcohol issues.

About Diageo

Diageo (Dee-AH-Gee-O) is the world's leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wines and beer categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines.

Diageo is a global company, trading in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE).

For more information about Diageo, its people, brands, and performance, visit us at Diageo.com. For our global resource that promotes responsible drinking through the sharing of best practice tools, information and initiatives, visit DRINKiQ.com.

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SOURCE Diageo