Call for comment on proposed change to minimum alcohol content in wine

The food watchdog Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FZANZ) has called for comment on a proposal to reduce the minimum alcohol content in Australian produced wine.

FSANZ Chief Executive Steve McCutcheon said the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia had applied to reduce the minimum alcohol content permitted for Australian produced wine and sparkling wine from 8 per cent to 4.5 per cent alcohol/volume.

 “This will align Australian produced wine with the European Union, which is Australia’s largest wine export market. It will also address a regulatory disadvantage for the Australian wine industry compared to imported wine which has no minimum alcohol requirements,” McCutcheon said.

He said a risk assessment has not been completed on the basis that there are no public health and safety risks associated with this application.

“ Based on the available information, FSANZ concludes that the benefits of the proposed amendment outweigh any associated costs,” Mr McCutcheon said.

“We are seeking further comment on the potential costs and benefits of the proposed amendment through submissions on the assessment report.”

Submissions close on June 2.