Brewers of Europe, an organization representing 9.500 European brewing companies, aims to ensure that the labels on all beer bottles and cans in the European Union include information on ingredients and energy values by the end of 2022.
In September, a memorandum of understanding will be signed with the European Commission, formalizing this commitment. The Portuguese Brewers Association will also sign this memorandum on behalf of all its members. The European Commissioner for Health, Vytenis Andriukaitis, has confirmed his attendance at the official signing ceremony.
Memorandum
The memorandum, supported by beer producers, is also open to companies and associations in the other alcoholic beverage industry, provided that the signatories fully support this document and its commitment to disclosing information about ingredients and energy values on beverage packaging.
Regarding this decision by the European brewing sector, taken at the last General Assembly held on June 5th in Antwerp, the Secretary-General of the Portuguese Brewers Association, Francisco Gírio, stated that “ the Portuguese Brewers Association has had a commitment since 2018, submitted to the National Alcohol and Health Forum (FNAS), led by SICAD, for all its members to voluntarily make this information available to consumers. It is with great satisfaction that we will take this new step with the formalization of the European commitment in September. We hope that this example will also be followed by other alcoholic beverage sectors at the national level and that they will sign the memorandum of understanding on the labeling of ingredients and energy values .”
Information about the ingredients
Over the past four years, European beer producers have been voluntarily disclosing information about ingredients and energy values, in accordance with EU Regulation 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers. Recently released information for the entire European sector indicates that 60% of beers already display calorie information on the packaging, while 85% include a list of ingredients.
The Portuguese Brewers Association reports that, following the commitment made with the National Fund for the Promotion of National Energy and Food Safety (FNAS), approximately 96% of national beers now have consumer labeling with calorie content information, and ingredient labeling is 100% compliant with current national legislation.
Labeling
Following the release of the latest data on labeling in the beer sector, Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis stated that he was “ pleased with the commitment of beer producers to provide a complete list of ingredients and energy values on the labels of all beers .” He added that “ European regulations establish rules to be followed, and I am very pleased that brewers are complying with these high standards, defined for the benefit of public health and the information provided to consumers .”
The purpose of the memorandum of understanding is for all companies to publicly assume responsibility for disclosing ingredients and calories on their product labels. Trade associations should support this effort by setting local targets and publishing industry reports. The ultimate goal is for consumers to receive understandable, recognizable, comparable, and accurate information about alcoholic beverages.
Francisco Gírio further emphasized that " consumers can only be encouraged to make informed choices if there is fairness in the information about ingredients and energy values," adding that "current European legislation already establishes the rules and how to comply. It is up to the producers of alcoholic beverages to make their choice ."
