On January 16, 2023, Australia issued notification G/TBT/N/AUS/154, and Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) issued a proposal to revise energy labels for alcoholic beverages.

The proposal considers amendments to the Australia-New Zealand Food Standards Code to require energy (KJ/Kcal) labeling information for packaged alcoholic beverages sold in Australia and New Zealand with an alcohol content (ABV) of 0.5% or more.

FSANZ has carried out an assessment and developed a draft proposed amendment to the Code. Affected standards are: Standard 1.1.2 Definitions used in this code; Standard 1.2.1 Requirements for labeling or otherwise presenting information; and Standard 2.7.1 Labeling of alcoholic beverages and food. The location of the declaration is not specified; the revision proposes a three-year transition period and an inventory exemption for products packaged and labeled before the transition period ends. The proposal is now for comments, and the deadline for feedback is February 27, 2023.

The main contents of the proposal include:

(1) A statement of the proposed alcohol content. All beverages containing 0.5% ABV or more must include alcohol content information on the label (criteria 2.7.1);

(2) For alcoholic beverages containing more than 1.15% ABV, the label must include the alcohol content as a percentage of ABV or mL/100mL. For example, the label could state that the beverage contains 5% ABV, or a beverage with an alcohol content of 5mL/100mL. For alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content of 1.15% ABV or less, the alcohol content must be written with the words "not exceeding X% alcohol by volume". For example, the label could state that the beverage contains no more than 1.0 percent alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are exempt from the NIP labeling requirement to include energy content information unless a permissible nutrient content claim is made for energy or carbohydrate content.