The European Commission recently presented its proposal on mandatory labeling of the list of the ingredients and the nutrition declaration of alcohol beverages. Currently, the alcohol industry was not required to provide ingredients and nutrition information. This was in stark contrast to other foods, which had to provide labelling information.
The European Commission has now given the alcohol industry 1-year for a self-regulatory proposal to fill the information gap. The European Commission will consider regulation, should the industry fail to come up with the voluntary initiative. Similarly, the European Commission will launch an impact assessment should it not find suitable the industry proposal and consider both regulatory and non-regulatory options.
The spirits industry has thus 1-year to find an agreement that meets the expectation of the EU institutions. Otherwise, it could face further regulation.