The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has issued a May 28, 2013, ruling that will allow alcoholic beverage manufacturers “to provide consumers with nutritional information about their products.” Acting under the authority of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act, TTB will permit the use of “Serving Facts” statements on wine, distilled spirits and malt beverages that describe the product’s “serving size, the number of servings per container, the number of calories, and the number of grams of carbohydrates, protein, and fat per serving.” Manufacturers may also choose to include information “about the alcohol content of the product as a percentage of alcohol by volume and may also include a statement of the fluid ounces of pure ethyl alcohol per serving.” According to the new ruling, TTB issued the voluntary guidance pending plans to require similar Serving Facts statements on all alcoholic beverage labels.…
Category Archives Department of the Treasury
The White House has issued a policy directive intended to promote “authorized engagements with Cuba to advance cooperation on areas of mutual interest, and increase travel to, commerce with, and the free flow of information to Cuba.” To this end, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security have announced amendments to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations and Export Administration Regulations that will lift restrictions on travelers bringing Cuba-origin alcohol, cigars and other products back to the United States for personal use. According to the announcement, OFAC considers “personal use” of imported merchandise “to include giving the item to another individual as a personal gift, but not the transfer of the item to another person for payment or other consideration.” In addition, the new rules permit a range of specific healthcare, humanitarian, trade, and commerce transactions, and…
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has issued a revised interim policy on gluten content statements permitted in wine, distilled spirits and malt beverage labeling and advertising. TTB took the action after reviewing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) final rule on the use of “gluten-free” on labels for products within that agency’s jurisdiction with the goal of making its approach “as consistent as possible with the regulations that FDA issued.” Thus, TTB Ruling 2014-2 supersedes TTB Ruling 2012-2; it remains an interim ruling, however, until “FDA issues a final rule or other guidance with respect to fermented and hydrolyzed products.” Under TTB’s revised interim policy, “the term ‘gluten-free’ may be used on labels and in advertisements if the product would be entitled to make a gluten-free label claim under the standards set forth in the new FDA regulations at 21…
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has issued a final rule amending the standards for cognac and pisco, a type of brandy manufactured in Peru and Chile. According to TTB, the final rule honors an international agreement with Peru and Chile recognizing pisco as a distinctive product of those countries in exchange for the recognition of Bourbon Whiskey and Tennessee Whiskey as distinctive products of the United States. The final rule clarifies that pisco is “a type of brandy that must be manufactured in accordance with the laws and regulations of either Peru or Chile” and removes “Pisco brandy” from the list of examples of geographic designations in the distilled spirits standard of identity. Under the new rules, qualifying products can now bear the name “Pisco” or any of its equivalents—“Pisco Perú,” “Pisco Chileno” or “Chilean Pisco” without needing to add the term “brandy”…
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has issued guidance to industry on the “Use of Social Media in the Advertising of Alcohol Beverages.” According to the May 13, 2013, circular, TTB considers that the advertising provisions of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (FAA Act) apply to all advertisements “including social media.” The guidance aims to provide “a basis for voluntary compliance with the FAA Act and the TTB advertising regulations with regard to social media, both in terms of required mandatory statements and prohibited practices or statements.” TTB defines social media outlets as social network services, video sharing sites, blogs, microblogs, forums or comment sections on websites, apps for mobile devices, and links and quick response codes. Applicable to advertisements for wine, distilled spirits and malt beverages, the requirements include posting a responsible advertiser name and address and avoiding prohibited statements, including false health…
