‘Skinny jabs’ are turning slimmers teetotal – and drinks companies are feeling the loss
‘Skinny jabs’ are turning slimmers teetotal – and drinks companies are feeling the loss
Share:
As the public rejoice at shedding weight, the likes of Wegovy seem to be controlling other bad habits – in particular drinking to excess. ‘My alcohol intake has plummeted,” says Hannah. “Since taking Wegovy I hardly ever crave a drink when I get home. When I used to go out with friends, I was nearly always the last one standing; now I’m leaving two hours before closing.”.
![[Boxes of Ozempic and Mounjaro, semaglutide and tirzepatide injection drugs used for treating type 2 diabetes and made by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/62c79066d919775c531aa74230e3b110f83b5014/0_390_7511_4506/master/7511.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
In her early 30s, the Londoner is among the rapidly growing number of people turning to weight loss injections such as Wegovy and Mounjaro. The results have been dramatic – she has shed four stone (25kg) in little over six months. Wider usage of these “skinny jabs” could reverberate through the business world. While runaway demand will boost sectors such as biotech (analysts think the therapies made by firms such as Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk will be a $100bn (£82bn) global market by 2033), it could deal a blow to others – notably food, drink, retail and leisure – if customers live more abstemious lives.
![[Terry Smith]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/fb398432caf3532a1f6d9d688a3839963a919611/0_0_2627_1815/master/2627.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
The potential for upheaval was highlighted this month when Terry Smith, one of the UK’s best-known stock pickers, revealed his investment fund had offloaded its stake in Diageo, the FTSE 100 drinks company, partly because he thought these drugs threatened to depress alcohol sales in the longer run.
Smith, who runs the Fundsmith Equity fund, told shareholders in his annual letter that the drinks sector “is in the early stages of being impacted negatively by weight loss drugs”. “Indeed, it seems likely that the drugs will eventually be used to treat alcoholism, such is their effect on consumption,” he added.
