Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) under the US Treasury Department has proposed new mandatory policies of adding detailed information on all alcohol containers.
Among products to receive these labels will include distilled spirits, malt beverages, wines, and the like. TTB issued a notice soliciting comments on the proposal, which creates an "alcohol facts" box, parallel to food label requirements.
Now, in this box, AP News reported that it will not only share details such as content per saving for calories, carbohydrates, fat, and protein, but also declare major allergens, such as eggs, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, and so on.
TTB and other lobbyists argued that these detailed labels will ensure that consumers are more informed on what they put in their bodies, giving them a choice to choose which can be good for them based on health recommendations, and most importantly, prevent severe allergic reactions.
The TTB mandate calls for the expression of alcohol contents, quality, and identity through the labels. This proposal seems to align with this idea.
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Push for More Detailed Alcohol Label Content
Decades of lobbying by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and other such groups have seen a call for alcoholic beverages to be labeled with nutritional information. Though alcohol companies have provided nutritional data on labels for many years, only a small number of producers have used voluntary labels. Therefore, advocates push for a mandatory policy.
The Wine Institute has taken a positive attitude toward digital labels, such as QR codes. This would assist in providing information on nutritional values. This can be done while minimizing the impact of the production line for winemakers. The Distilled Spirits Council has also shown potential usage of QR codes or links to websites.
Comments on the proposed rule can be made publicly until April 16th, and implementation of the proposed change will not be required to begin five years after final rule approval.
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