I don’t drink. I’m about to be a dad – September 9 marks the launch of the FASOFF educational campaign

According to PARPA’s 2022 research, 7% of women drink alcohol while pregnant, even though 95% of Poles know that it is harmful for both the mother and the child. As a result, every year in Poland there are 900 children being born with FAS (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome), which manifests with brain damage, speech, reading, and concentration difficulties, as well as heart and vision defects. The defects are irreversible. Therefore, on September 9, recognizing International FAS Awareness Day, Kompania Piwowarska joins forces with the “Dom w Łodzi” Foundation for the fourth time to launch their joint social campaign called FASOFF. This time, it will be run under the slogan: I’m about to be a dad. I don’t drink along with her.

– Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a tragedy for a child. The damage caused during the fetal period due to alcohol exposure is varied, can be very complex, and often irreversible. Even if we are able to help – for example, by performing heart surgery, correcting drooping eyelids, or addressing urological issues – it always involves pain and trauma, as it means weeks-long hospital stays. The most dramatic changes are those that will stay with the child for life: intellectual disability or neurological changes that disrupt normal functioning. We are well aware of this because many of the children supported by our foundation suffer from FAS – says Jolanta Bobińska, founder and president of the “Dom w Łodzi” Foundation. 

This year's campaign is aimed mainly at future fathers, tapping into the sports thrills and cheering, and will run during the Euro 2024 qualifiers. The campaign's symbol is an upside-down wine glass.

 – We believe it is a great way to highlight the importance of the role played by men who are future dads, because after all, a family is like a team. We encourage men to support their pregnant wives or partners in abstaining from alcohol, as this is the only way to prevent Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Drinking during pregnancy destroys a child's life and makes the  whole family's life completely different and more challenging as it requires raising and supporting a child with disabilities. A few months of abstinence is an exceptionally low price for the certainty that FAS will not ruin our child's life – emphasizes Jolanta Bobińska. 

– Kompania Piwowarska has spent 10 years reminding people, in various forms, that alcohol is not for everyone, and there are many situations in which it should absolutely not be consumed. One of those situations is pregnancy. For the past four years, we have been collaborating with "Dom w Łodzi" which, from its own experience, knows how much of  a tragedy fetal alcohol syndrome is for the affected children and their parents. We know that this approach helps us spread our message more widely and attracts the attention of a much larger audience than if we were doing it all alone. This year, taking advantage of the Euro 2024 qualifiers, we have provocatively focused on men as the primary audience and soccer as the medium of our campaign. Controversial? For some men, probably yes. But if these controversies spark a broader discussion about the importance of abstinence during pregnancy, it is all worth it. Because everyone should know that – emphasizes Grzegorz Adamski, Public Affairs and Sustainability Manager at Kompania Piwowarska.

The campaign is promoted with a TV commercial, dedicated website at www.fasoff.pl, social media campaign, and influencer outreach efforts. 

Kompania Piwowarska has been supporting the Foundation within the framework of the FASOFF campaign for 4 years.