serving facts/allergens

It is likely that all beer, wine and spirits labels will change dramatically in the near future. TTB has been working on new rules since CSPI and other groups submitted a petition in 2003. The new rules would require a “Serving Facts” panel on every container. This panel would include a lot more information, such as the typical serving size, number of servings per container, calories, carbohydrates, protein and fat. Because this is a big, controversial change, TTB has received more than 18,000 public comments during the past few years. There are far too many comments for most people to review, and so we will highlight and summarize the most noteworthy comments here. The most recent proposal and comments are here. This is comment 3 in a series; to see others, click on the “serving facts” tag below.

1. The AMA believes “The public desires and deserves accurate information on ingredients and potential allergens in alcoholic beverages.”
2. “Consumers are confused about the type and amount of alcohol” in newer products such as wine coolers, “alcopops,” and “high malt content beer products with names and packaging deceptively similar to those of same-brand distilled spirits.”
3. Roughly half of all alcoholic beverages are consumed by persons with alcohol use disorders.
4. “Serving Facts” should appear in a consistent manner across all labels,...

It is likely that all beer, wine and spirits labels will change dramatically in the near future. TTB has been working on new rules since CSPI and other groups submitted a petition in 2003. The new rules would require a “Serving Facts” panel on every container. This panel would include a lot more information, such as the typical serving size, number of servings per container, calories, carbohydrates, protein and fat. Because this is a big, controversial change, TTB has received more than 18,000 public comments during the past few years. There are far too many comments for most people to review, and so we will highlight and summarize the most noteworthy comments here. The most recent proposal and comments are here. This is comment 1 in a series; to see others, click on the “serving facts” tag below.

1. MADD has “no objections to the responsible use of alcohol by adults.”
2. Thousands die each year due to misjudging (or ignoring) rules of responsible consumption.
3. “Standard drinks” labeling will better educate consumers.
4. There should be equivalence among beer, wine and spirits, based on a standard drink equal to 0.6 fluid ounces of pure alcohol.
5. The facts panel should require a moderation message such as “no more than two drinks for men, one drink per day for women.”

Is...

This French Apple Cider provides a small taste of what is coming soon. It is our understanding that TTB has no plans to require or encourage ingredient labeling, such as that on the back label here. But TTB does have big plans to require Serving Facts Labeling (similar to this Nutrition Facts labeling) someday very soon. It’s a big, important change. There is a lot of data on this back label; much of it will be required in a few years and almost none of it would have been required 20 years ago. The Government Warning arrived 20 years ago and redemption labeling (as well as the UPC) started appearing a few decades ago. This COLA is unusual because FDA (not TTB) typically has authority over wines under 7% alc./vol. (such as this cider). But here the importer noted (at box 19) “submitting for review of health warning.” TTB retains control over the Warning and the wine tax, even in those instances where general labeling jurisdiction shifts over to FDA. Some time after approval, TTB apparently decided to hand this back to FDA, as the current status of this approval is “surrendered.”