Is your alcohol-free beer 0.0? Dutch brewers want uniform rules

Dutch brewers want uniform European rules to prevent false competition and avoid confusion over the term “alcohol-free” for beers containing a small amount of alcohol.

In the Netherlands so-called alcohol-free beer can contain just 0.1% alcohol while alcohol-free wine can contain up to 0.5 %. Anything up to 1.2% is labelled “alcohol arm” or alcohol poor.

However, in other European countries the rules are different, with Belgium and Germany labelling beer with a volume of 0.5% alcohol-free while in Spain and Italy the term includes drinks with up to 1% and 1.2% alcohol respectively.

These products are also sold in the Netherlands, which means that supermarkets are selling “alcohol-free” beer with over 1% alcohol and this, Dutch brewers say, constitutes unfair competition.

The European rule is that beer and wine containing 0.5% alcohol may be called “non-alcoholic” and some Dutch brewers opt for the English term because they wouldn’t be allowed the alcohol-free nomination.

“The labelling is misleading, particularly for people who don’t want to consume any alcohol at all,” Anne Lutgerink of healthy eating institute Voedingscentrum told broadcaster NOS. “The terminology suggests something that is not true. It’s very confusing,” she said.

The brewers agree the different European rules are confusing but not misleading. “We keep to the rules but it’s in the consumers’ interest to be clear about what is in the beer,” said Jos Oostendorp, chairman of Craft, which represents 200 small breweries.

To achieve a more unified labelling system, brewery trade associations are talking to their European colleagues but so far German brewers have not been keen on changing the rules, Oostendorp said.  “But they may come around eventually,” he said.

Food safety watchdog NVWA said it would look at the English term “non-alcoholic” on Dutch beers to see if is misleading.

According to a health ministry spokesman, people who cannot drink alcohol or don’t want to must check the label for its exact alcohol content or choose the 0.0 variety to make sure.