Request a Demo1. Definition and Product Classification
According to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives, beverages in the EU are divided into two broad categories: non-alcoholic (Product category 14.1) and alcoholic (Product category 14.2). The scope excludes products covered by “Category 1 Dairy products and analogues.”
In this pedia, ChemLinked will focus on the regulations for alcoholic beverages.
Product category number | Product name |
14. | Beverages |
14.2 | Alcoholic beverages, including alcohol-free and low-alcohol counterparts |
14.2.1 | Beer and malt beverages |
14.2.2 | Wine and other products defined in Part II of Annex VII to Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 |
14.2.3 | Cider and perry |
14.2.4 | Fruit wine and made wine |
14.2.5 | Mead |
14.2.6 | Spirit drinks as defined in Regulation (EU) 2019/787 |
14.2.7 | Aromatised wine products as defined by Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 |
14.2.8 | Other alcoholic beverages including mixtures of alcoholic beverages with non-alcoholic beverages and other alcoholic beverages based on distilled alcohol with alcoholic strength by volume less than 15 % |
Read more at: Guidance document describing the food categories in Part E of Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on Food Additives
2. Competent Authority
Competent authority | Responsibility |
European Commission (EC)* | Developing and implementing laws, authorizing the use of a substance in food, etc. |
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) | Evaluating product safety and providing scientific advice & support |
Member States | Developing national rules in the absence of EU-level legislation |
*Notes: The European Parliament and the Council, representing EU citizens and governments respectively, participate in the decision-making process with the European Commission. However, the European Commission, which includes departments like the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, is the main executive body. | |
3. Main Regulations
3.1 General Regulations
All alcoholic beverages must comply with a framework of general EU food laws.
Key covered aspect | Regulation name |
Fundamental law | Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 (the General Food Law) laying down the general principles and requirements of food law |
Food hygiene & contaminant limit |
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Vitamins and minerals | Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 on the addition of vitamins and minerals and of certain other substances to foods |
Food improvement agents |
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Novel food |
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Labeling & claim |
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Food packaging |
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3.2 Additional Harmonized Product-Specific Regulations
Certain types of alcoholic beverages are subject to additional, specific EU-wide rules.
No. | Specific product | Regulation name |
1 | Wine and other grapevine products | Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products |
Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 as regards applications for protection and labelling of designations of origin and geographical indications, applications for protection, the objection procedure, modification and cancellation of traditional terms and labelling and presentation in the wine sector | ||
2 | Spirit drinks as defined in Regulation (EU) 2019/787 | Regulation (EU) 2019/787 on the definition, description, presentation and labelling of spirit drinks, the use of the names of spirit drinks in the presentation and labelling of other foodstuffs, the protection of geographical indications for spirit drinks, the use of ethyl alcohol and distillates of agricultural origin in alcoholic beverages |
3 | Aromatised wine products as defined by Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 | Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 on the definition, description, presentation and labelling of aromatised wine products |
4. Market Access Approval
The EU enforces strict import rules to ensure that all imported food meets the same high standards for consumer safety and hygiene as products originating from the EU. Regulation (EU) 2017/625 is the key legal basis providing requirements on official controls and other official activities performed to ensure the application of food law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products.
Current approach to import controls varies according to the sector. Generally speaking, official controls at ports include documentary check, identity checks and physical checks. Detailed official control measures can be found in Regulation (EU) 2017/625. Affected alcoholic beverages can be found in the table below.
No. | Food type | Measures | Example of soft drinks |
1 | Live animals, products of animal origin, plants and plant products | These products require mandatory channeling to Border Control Posts (BCPs) for checks. | Products listed in the Annex to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/632 shall be subject to official controls at border control posts in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/625:
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|
| ||
| Phytosanitary certificate | ||
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| ||
2 | The vast majority of other products (for example feed and food which are of non-animal origin - including certain composite products, additives and other substances that might impact on the characteristics of food and feed, or materials intended to enter into contact with food) | Not channelled through specific border entities and doesn't need to undergo mandatory checks prior to their entry into the EU | E.g., Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/630 provides a list of composite products exempted from official controls at border control posts:
|
3 | Certain foods of non-animal origin that are listed under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 | Temporarily subject to mandatory border controls due to the existence of an identified risk:
| N.A |
5. Product Compliance
General food rules, such as those for labeling, safety, and hygiene, are harmonized across the EU. Some products, like fruit juice and coffee extracts, must also follow additional product-specific EU rules.
For non-harmonized food products without specific EU rules (e.g., beer), compliance with general horizontal regulations is required. These include:
Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 (General Food Law)
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 (Food information to consumers)
Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 (Novel food)
Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 (Fortified food)
Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 (Nutrition and health claims, voluntary)
…
For non-harmonised foods, Member states may also be able to introduce their own national rules for these products. National rules on these products are subject to an EU notification procedure to make sure they do not create unnecessary barriers to trade. Non-harmonised food products can circulate freely on the EU market under mutual recognition rules. Therefore, enterprises shall pay special attention to the national legislations before entering the market.
6. Ingredient
6.1 General Rules
6.1.1 Basic Food Safety Requirements by General Food Law
Under the General Food Law, food cannot be placed on the market if it is unsafe. A food is considered unsafe if it is injurious to health or unfit for human consumption. Read more at General Food Law to view the conditions in determining whether any food is unsafe, injurious to health, unfit for consumption, deemed to be safe, etc.
If any food within a batch is found to be unsafe, the entire batch is presumed to be unsafe unless a detailed assessment proves otherwise. Additionally, principles of precaution and traceability must be followed at all stages of production, processing, and distribution.
6.1.2 Other Horizontal Requirements
Then stakeholders shall follow the horizontal regulations regarding the use of vitamins and minerals, food improvement agents specified in Part “3. Main Regulations”, which are with Union Lists:
Regulation 1333/2008 on food additives
Regulation 231/2012 specifications for food additives listed in Annexes II and III to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008
Regulation 1334/2008 on flavorings and certain food ingredients with flavoring properties for use in and on foods
Regulation (EC) No 2065/2003 on smoke flavorings used or intended for use in or on foods
Regulation (EC) No 1332/2008 on food enzymes
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2470 establishing the Union list of novel foods [Please note that only the applicant may place the corresponding novel food on the market, with a protection period of five years. A subsequent applicant can obtain authorization for that novel food either without reference to the protected scientific data or with the agreement of the initial applicant.]
Recommended tool developed by ChemLinked:
FoodCheck tool for checking food additive, labeling, claim and contaminant compliance
6.1.3 New Substance/Food Authorization
To use a new food improvement agent or novel food, an application must be submitted to the European Commission through the e-submission food chain platform.
Application dossiers are summarized as below.
Type | Legal basis & guidance | Application dossiers |
New food improvement agents (food additives, food enzymes and flavourings) |
| An application (“dossier”) may contain:
|
Novel food application |
| 1. Administrative data
2. Summary data A short summary of the dossier must be provided. This document will be made available to the public through the OpenEFSA portal once the application is considered valid along with the non-confidential version of the application dossier. It must not contain any confidential information.
3. Technical dossier It should be compiled according to relevant EFSA’s scientific guidance documents. Required information include production process, compositional data, specifications, proposed uses and use levels and anticipated intake of the novel food, toxicological information, etc. |
6.2 Product-Specific Regulations
In addition to horizontal rules, products must comply with any specific regulations that apply to them. For example,
Specific product | Major content |
Wine and other grapevine products |
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Spirit drinks as defined in Regulation (EU) 2019/787 | Regulation (EU) 2019/787 stipulates the ingredient requirements for spirit drinks. For example,
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Aromatised wine products as defined by Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 | Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 covers the ingredient requirements for aromatized wine products. E.g., aromatised wine is a drink:
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7. Labeling
To determine the labeling requirements for a specific food category, stakeholders shall refer to the general labeling requirements and the provisions stipulated in product-specific rules. To help enterprises deal with the labeling issues, the EU has issued a food labeling information system. After selecting food categories, the system will generate the labeling results for enterprises’ reference.
Most alcoholic beverages need to display the following mandatory labeling items.
Product name
Ingredient list
Allergen information
Quantity information
Date marking: "best before", or the "use by" date
The name or business name and address of the responsible food business operator
The country of origin
The actual alcoholic strength by volume (for beverage containing more than 1.2 % by volume of alcohol)
Lot indication
Special labeling requirements for different categories (E.g., Sparkling wine need to label sugar content; label the indication about certain production methods for aerated sparkling wine, aerated semi-sparkling wine and quality sparkling wine, etc.)
Mandatory when applicable/added: statement on ingredients and additives (e.g., QUID, etc.), nutrition declaration, any special storage conditions and/or conditions of use, instruction for use, GMO information
Check the labeling example for beverage in ChemLinked’s FoodCheck tool regarding labeling.
8. Claims
EU has three types of claims, including
Nutrition claims, which can be further divided into
a Nutrition claim and
b Comparative claim
Health claim, which can be further classified into
a Health claim referring to reduction of disease risk
b Health claim referring to children’s development and health
c Health claim other than those referring to the reduction of disease risk and to children’s development and health
Ingredient content claim
Detailed definition, application scope, requirements or permitted claims can be found in ChemLinked’s FoodCheck tool regarding claims. For example, beverages containing more than 1,2 % by volume of alcohol shall not bear health claims.
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