The local and European drinks trade has reacted positively to Ireland’s delay of implementing health warnings and calorie information on alcoholic beverages.
Reports emerged last week indicating the government’s intention to delay putting the legislation into force.
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Two senior government officials told Politico the move was being made due to fears of US tariffs affecting Ireland’s drinks exports.
In a statement to Just Drinks yesterday (23 July), the Department of Health said: “Following the Government’s decision to defer the implementation of alcohol labelling requirements from 2026 to 2028, the Department of Health will arrange for the necessary amendments to the relevant regulations.”
National drinks trade body Drinks Ireland welcomed the delay. It said the move brings “much-needed relief” for producers, “and allows our exporters to focus their resources and efforts on market diversification and indeed, survival of their businesses”.
The Irish drinks sector is already facing “major trade uncertainty, new tariffs on product[s] entering our most important export market, the US, and threats of further tariff escalation”, the association said, adding while Irish producers are focused on exports, they also require a “strong, competitive domestic marketplace”.
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By GlobalDataThe country passed the legislation in 2023. It required alcohol producers to include health warning labels on drinks labelling information for alcoholic beverages.
The labels were intended to highlight the risks of drinking alcohol and include information on a product’s calorie content. They were supposed to come into effect from May next year.
The labelling law which was to be implemented “as a unilateral national measure” would have seen packaging and labelling costs go up “by some 35%”, according to Drinks Ireland.
The trade body argued that the law should be implemented at the EU level “to maintain the integrity of the EU Single Market and avoid additional costs on Irish businesses versus our competitors”.
“Pushing through this unilateral change would have resulted in some businesses forgoing the Irish market, would have driven up the price of doing business for all drinks producers and would have impacted on the cost and choice for consumers.”
EU wine trade body Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins (CEEV) also welcomed the Irish government’s decision, describing it as “an important opportunity to re-align regulatory efforts with EU law and the principles of the Single Market”.
“Introducing a unilateral and disproportionate health warning on all alcoholic beverages sold in Ireland would have imposed significant costs and administrative burdens, especially for small and medium-sized wine producers, while undermining the integrity of the EU Single Market and legal framework,” said Marzia Varvaglione, president of the CEEV.
“Public health objectives must be pursued in a legally sound and coordinated way. Fragmentation only leads to confusion for consumers and unnecessary costs for producers,” she added.
The CEEV filed a complaint to the European Commission on Ireland’s new labelling laws when they were announced two years ago, it said, stating that the legislation went against “the Union’s legal framework”.
“This pause shall be more than just a delay, it is a much-needed chance to rethink how we ensure consumers are well-informed, while also safeguarding the legal and economic coherence of the European market,” Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, the secretary general of CEEV, said.
“Wine producers and consumers deserve rules that are balanced, evidence-based, and applied consistently across the EU.”
Delay with “real-life consequences”, says charity
Local charity Alcohol Action Ireland however said it was “disappointed” by the delay, arguing that the legislation was a crucial part of Ireland’s Public Health (Alcohol) Act (2018), which looks to reduce the negative effects of alcohol, and cut down national consumption.
Dr Sheila Gilheany, the CEO of Alcohol Action Ireland, said: “To say that this delay is a blow for public health in Ireland is an understatement. It is a failure of leadership and of democracy.
“It’s not just that Irish people are being denied their right to information regarding some of the facts about alcohol so that they can make informed decisions. It’s not just that the government is allowing its own groundbreaking legislation to be undermined by the very industry it is designed to regulate.
“This delay will have real-life consequences that will be felt by ordinary Irish people every day.”
