Statement of Principles on Wine Label Requirements

Desiring to facilitate international trade in wine in accordance with the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization of April 15 1994, recognising the principle of mutual acceptance and that wine labels, and any regulations relating to them, should be designed to meet the various needs of consumers, producers and regulators, the following principles should be embodied in the proposed NWWP agreement on mandatory wine labeling requirements and practices.

1. All information contained on labels should be clear, accurate, truthful and not misleading.

2. The Universal Mandatory Information - Product Designation, Content Volume, Percentage Alcohol and Country of Origin - should appear in a single field of vision, i.e. they should be legible at the same time without having to turn the container.

3. Any other information stipulated by individual national requirements may appear in the same field of vision as the Universal Mandatory Information or elsewhere on the container.

4. Optional additional information may appear in any field(s) of vision.

5. Provided the Universal Mandatory Information appears together in one field of vision it will be permissible for all or parts of it (or for any other information) to be repeated in any other field of vision.

6. All mandatory information, whether Universal Mandatory Information or individual national requirements, should be legible and discernable.

7. Pursuant to the prevailing principle of mutual acceptance

a. Percentage Alcohol may be expressed as _% Alcohol by Volume, _% alc/vol, alc_%vol, ___%vol, or any variation or other abbreviation which accurately conveys the same meaning.
b. the Content Volume of the container may be expressed in centilitres (cl), millilitres (ml) or litres (l).
c. minimum type sizes and any similar requirements should be subject to mutual acceptance.

8. Provided the foregoing requirements are met, wine producers should be free to:

a. provide consumers with descriptive information in addition to the Universal Mandatory Information and other individual national requirements.
b. label their products as they see fit subject to TRIPS and applicable laws on geographical indications and intellectual property.

The WWTG Government Section also released a statement from the Sonoma meeting which reads:

Mutual Acceptance Agreement on Oenological Practices

At their meeting on October 4-5 2000 in Sonoma, California, New World Wine Producer Countries (Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States of America) advanced negotiations of a Mutual Acceptance Agreement on oenological practices. The Agreement will facilitate trade in wine by Parties accepting wines made in conformity with the exporting country's regulatory requirements relating to oenological practices. New World Wine Producer Countries will initial the final text as soon as their respective internal review procedures permit. The Agreement will be open to membership by others agreeing to undertake its obligations.

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