Northwest Wayne News

Cliff Denha, owner of Wine Palace in Livonia, said the local economy would suffer if federal guidelines on alcohol consumption were changed to recommending no level of alcohol is safe. 

"Now the Biden administration and unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., appear to be taking notice of WHO’s claims as they work to create a new set U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which will come out in 2025," Denha wrote in an article on Crain's Detroit. "As a Southeast Michigan liquor store owner who serves thousands of people and creates jobs, what does that mean for my business, those jobs, and our customers? Nothing good."

"Here in Michigan, our culture and economy are notably intertwined with moderate and responsible drinking in the form of countless — and very popular — wineries, breweries, distilleries, restaurants, and retailers, to name a few," Denha wrote. "Making sweeping statements like “no safe level” not only disregards the nuanced reality of consuming alcohol and its role in our culture and entertainment here in Michigan, but also poses potential harm to small businesses and our state’s economic fabric."

The USDA and HHS have plans to conduct a review on alcohol use, which would impact their suggestions for the federal guidelines on alcohol consumption. In August, the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States sent a letter to the agencies to inquire about the goals of the review, according to Wine Spectator. 

The HHS's current guidelines for alcohol consumption are one or fewer drinks per day for women, and two or fewer drinks per day for men. 

A recent study by Wine American reported that Michigan is home to 196 wine producers who work on 1,448 acres of vineyards. The state's industry supported 46,769 total jobs in 2022. The winery industry also generated $6.33 billion in the same year.  

"It is also the seventh largest wine producing state in the nation, with Northwest Lower Michigan growing 60% of grapes needed," Sherri Fenton, managing owner of Black Star Farms in Suttons Bay wrote in an op-ed in the Detroit News.

The World Health Organization (WHO) led an initiative in 2019, called A World Free from Alcohol-Related Harms (SAFER), which aimed to reduce the harmful use of alcohol by 10% by 2025. WHO released a statement in January of 2023 saying there was "no safe amount that does not affect health" in regards to alcohol consumption.

A June 2024 study from WHO announced that between 2010 and 2019, there was a 20% decrease world wide in alcohol related deaths.

Wine Palace Livonia, located on Middlebelt road in Livonia, is a 9,000 square foot liquor, wine, and beer store.