Mindful drinking movement Club Soda has slammed the outcome of a recent low- and no-alcohol consultation, details of which were announced this week.
Founder Laura Willoughby said: “The government has announced that the descriptors won’t change but will become guidance enforced by trading standards. We believe the result makes how drinks can be described, or labelled, even more confusing than it was before.
“The decision was based on a poorly structured consultation which focused more heavily on what level ‘low alcohol’ should be set at, rather than exploring what was alcohol-free.
“Making the levels of alcohol clear is important, of course, but we now have a confusing situation where what is described in the UK as alcohol-free (0.05%) puts us at odds with the rest of the world where 0.5% is considered trace alcohol and therefore alcohol-free — safe for drivers and pregnant women.
“This is the same as some food stuffs eaten in quantity, such as orange juice or ginger beer, which are not described as having any association with alcohol whatsoever.”
‘Bitterly disappointing’
Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said: “It is bitterly disappointing that the Department of Health has missed this opportunity to give consumers greater clarity when it comes to the labelling of low-alcohol beers.
“Changing the current definition of ‘alcohol free’ beer from 0.05% ABV to 0.5% ABV — as we suggested during the consultation process — would have brought the UK in line with the rest of Europe and other global markets.
“This creates the perverse situation whereby beers at 0.5% ABV produced in Europe can be sold in the UK as alcohol free, but British brewers brewing at the same strength must label their beer differently. This is discrimination and will create confusion for consumers.”
