Definition, presentation and labelling of spirit drinks

On 19 October, the ENVI committee considered the amendments to the above draft report. This proposal aligns EU legislation on spirit drinks with the Lisbon Treaty. In addition, it contains technical adjustments of such legislation and it replaces the existing procedures for the management of geographical indications in the spirit drinks sector, with new procedures modelled on the more exhaustive and well tested procedures for agricultural products and foodstuffs. 
 

The existing EU legal framework for spirit drinks enables the free circulation of goods in the single market by setting up product definitions, labelling rules and provisions related to the protection of geographical indications for spirit drinks. The tabled amendments cover a large range of provisions of the Commission proposal, in particular focussing on nutritional information on the labels of drinks, information on the sales denomination, the introduction of specific references such as the maturation period or traditional practices. Other amendments refer to the EU's customs code, tariff and compatibility of EU geographical indication with the WTO's TRIPS requirements.