Japan’s government recently kicked off a marketing campaign aimed at increasing alcohol sales among younger citizens, aged 20 to 39, in response to record decreases in alcohol tax income in Japan over the past few years, the Hindustan Times reported Friday.

On August 14, Japan’s National Tax Agency (NTA) launched a contest called “Sake Viva!” on August 14. The marketing scheme asks citizens between the ages of 20 and 39 to submit concepts for alcohol advertisements designed specifically for younger demographics, as well as ideas for relevant “new products and designs.”

“The idea is to elicit ideas from young people’s perspectives about new services and sales strategies, and to revitalize the domestic market, which is shrinking due to factors such as population decline, Japan’s Jiji Press news agency reported on August 14.

A private research institute recently found that approximately “half of young people [in Japan] do not have a daily drinking habit,” according to Jiji Press.

The “Sake Viva!” contest will accept entries through September 9. Finalists will advance to the last round of the competition in the form of a gala awards ceremony held in Tokyo on November 10. Japan’s NTA will fund the commercialization of the winning advertisement concept.

Alcohol consumption in Japan has fallen consistently over the past three decades. The average Japanese consumed 100 liters of alcohol annually in 1995. This figure dropped to 75 liters by 2020. The slump in alcohol sales has been reflected in the decreasing contribution of alcohol tax revenue to the Japanese federal budget, “which is already running a deficit of more than ¥48tn [about $350 billion USD],” the U.K.’s Guardian newspaper observed on August 17.

“Taxes on alcohol accounted for 1.7% of Japan’s tax revenue in 2020, down from 3% in 2011 and 5% in 1980. Total revenue from tax on alcohol in the 2020 financial year fell by more than ¥110bn to ¥1.1tn, compared with the previous year,” the Guardian reported, citing NTA data.

Alcohol tax revenue decreased in Japan by the greatest margin in 31 years from 2019 to 2020, according to the Japan Times.

“As working from home made strides to a certain extent during the Covid 19 [Chinese coronavirus] crisis, many people may have come to question whether they need to continue the habit of drinking with colleagues to deepen communication,” an NTA official told the Japan Times on August 2. “If the ‘new normal’ takes root, that will be an additional headwind for tax revenue.”

He referred to a Japanese custom in which professionals go out to bars with colleagues, bosses, or clients to continue or close business deals over drinks after the workday has concluded or to solidify business relationships.

“In the workplace, alcohol serves as a lubricant to break down barriers between managers and workers. After-work drinking parties are meant to encourage bonding and allow people to let their hair down,” Deutsche Welle observed in 2019. “This custom is called ‘nommunication’ — a combination of the Japanese word ‘nomu,’ meaning drink, and ‘communication.'”

“It is also an unwritten rule that anything that is said or done at an after-hours event involving alcohol is forgotten the next day,” according to the German public broadcaster.