‘Waste of Time’: Bourbon Distillery Decries Proposal to Enforce Calorie and Nutrition Labeling

(Photo: 2BAR Spirits)

In January, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau proposed regulations that would mandate calorie and allergen information on the labels of spirits, wines and malt beverages sold within the U.S. The proposal hopes to remedy a well-known blind spot within the industry — namely, that most alcohol is not regulated by the FDA and is thus exempt from a Nutrition Facts label.

Public comments on the proposal are open from now until April 17, and not everyone loves the idea. 2BAR Spirits, a grain-to-glass bourbon distillery based in Seattle, Washington, bluntly says that the law would be a “waste of time.”

“People drink alcohol to relax, spend time with friends and family, and to enjoy the many and varied flavor profiles that different spirits have to offer, often in pairings with food,” 2BAR founder Nathan Kaiser wrote in a statement. “Small distilleries will be hard-pressed to pay for the design and print costs to update their labels to include calorie and allergen information, especially given the state of the industry, with sales and volumes down across the board.”

Others within the alcohol industry have sung a similar tune.

Marc Sorini, VP of government affairs for the Brewers Association, says the proposal could prove prohibitively costly for mom-and-pop brands. According to Sorini, several trade associations suggested an alternative wherein calorie and allergen information would be accessible via a scannable QR code on each can or bottle, much the same as what’s currently required under the E.U.’s wine labeling regulations.

Sorini claims the TTB rejected the suggestion, “implicitly favoring large companies who can spread the cost of new labels or cans across many units.” The Brewers Association adds that it’s “extremely disappointed with some aspects” of the outcome.

In light of the controversy, let’s do a quick breakdown of what exactly consumers can expect if the TTB’s proposal comes to fruition.

Breaking Down the Label

Firstly, the legislation proposes that all alcohol beverages subject to the TTB’s authority must declare the presence, if any, of the following allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, soybeans and sesame.

Most of these ingredients can only be found in novelty products —  think of something like a trout brandy or the occasional black sesame liqueur. Other ingredients, however, are building blocks of the trade. The vast majority of whiskeys would be affected by the stipulation regarding wheat, as would cream-based liqueurs like Baileys be affected by the stipulation on milk.

The most consequential proposal comes down to calorie and nutrition labeling. According to the TTB, brands would be required to disclose many of the same stats found on the back of a bag of chips. The proposed label, dubbed “Alcohol Facts,” would include serving size, number of servings per container, alcohol content, number of ounces of pure alcohol per serving, calories per serving and number of grams per serving of carbohydrates, fat and protein.

Serving size and alcohol content are already standard prodedure within the industry. Calories per serving and nutrition content, not so much. Eva Greenthal of the Center for Science in the Public Interest says that the proposal represents a big step towards transparency, one that consumers have been demanding for years.

“To date, companies have been allowed to provide alcohol content, nutrition, and allergen information voluntarily, but a CSPI study of labels from top brands in 2021 found a limited number of companies were utilizing the voluntary labels,” Greenthal wrote. “A national poll of 1,500 adults who drink, conducted in March 2024, found that a majority support policies to require alcohol content, calorie, nutrition, allergen, and ingredient information on alcoholic beverages.”

If you’re interested in voicing your opinion for or against the proposal, submissions are currently open for public comment ahead of the deadline on April 17th.