Under an announcement published today in the Federal Register, Alcohol & Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau seeks to make it easier to comply with federal labeling regulations by seeking to apply the same rules to wine, distilled spirits and beer whenever possible.
Among the changes: Setting forth the process for a producer to receive permissions to make certain changes in order to personalize labels without having to resubmit the labels for TTB approval. Under the proposal, personalized labels may contain a message, picture or other artwork specific to the customer purchasing the product. This would cover customized labels for a wedding, or grand opening. The proposal is consistent with current policy, which also prohibits adding information that discusses either the alcohol beverage or the characteristics of the beverage.
TTB is proposing to add to the malt beverage regulations a provision that is already found in slightly different forms in parts 4 and 5. This provision authorizes, without any requirement for separate written permission from TTB, the addition of a label identifying the wholesaler, retailer, or consumer as long as the label contains no reference to the characteristics of the product, does not violate the labeling regulations, and does not obscure any existing labels.
The proposed regulations will standardize this provision for wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages, TTB said, adding it seeks comments from the industry on whether the proposed regulations will protect the integrity of labels in the marketplace without imposing undue burdens on the industry.
Another provision in the 132-page proposal deals with the requirement that mandatory information must be “separate and apart” from descriptive or explanatory information. But there are exceptions, including brand names, addition of brief optional phrases such as “premium malt beverage,) or, “proudly produced by ABC Winemaking Co. in Napa, Calif., for over 30 years.”
The full proposal can be found here.
TTB noted the rulemaking is the latest step in its efforts to create a modern labeling program. Previous steps have included:
Eliminating the need to obtain formula approval in certain instances;
Expanding the list of changes that can be made to approved labels without getting a new Certificate of Label Approval (COLA);
Updating COLAs Online and Formulas Online to better meet user needs and expectations;
Increasing guidance about label and formula requirements by improving content on TTB.gov and offering webinars; and
Adding staff to improve overall service levels.