Foodlaw-Reading
Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK
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DHSC Publications, 13 December 2018
The following documents have been published by the Department of Health and Social Care:
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The Government response to the consultation on low alcohol descriptors A copy of this publication is available on this site (click on image) Provided uder the Open Government Licence. The original document can be accessed from: |
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Low Alcohol Descriptors Guidance A copy of this publication is available on this site (click on image) Provided uder the Open Government Licence. The original document can be accessed from: |
The following indicate the relevance of the documents:
Response to Consultation - Taken from the conclusion to the response:
Conclusion
The Government is grateful to all those who took the time to respond to this consultation, and for the wide-ranging comments that were provided.
The responses to the consultation support the Government’s approach of the use of descriptors through guidance rather than legislation. The Government’s preference is to maintain the existing descriptors, but this guidance will be kept under review. The Government expects industry to comply with that guidance.
There is limited evidence to suggest providing descriptors above 1.2% ABV would be beneficial to public health. However, the Government will keep this under review. The use of guidance rather than legislation will enable changes to be made quickly, should the evidence base change
Publication of Guidance - Taken from the DHSC webpage announcement:
Details
This guidance concerns the appropriate use of low-alcohol descriptors to help the alcohol and retail industries market their products responsibly.
It sets out how the government expects low-alcohol drinks (those of 1.2% abv or less) to be described, and replaces the rules set out in the Food Labelling Regulations 1996, which were revoked on 13 December 2018.
