Health Warning Labels To Appear On Wine Bottles  Add/Read Comments

The Telegraph today reports that the government is to introduce health warning labels on wine bottles. The warnings should appear from next year.

Telegraph
"Labels are also likely to include details of where to get help for alcoholism. There could be a generic health message, such as "Please Drink Sensibly", though the industry is resisting stronger warnings such as those that appear on cigarette packets.

Drinks companies and many supermarkets on their own brand products already provide information about the units of alcohol on a voluntary basis, together with the address of the industry's "drinkaware" website.

But they are under pressure from Whitehall and Brussels to go much further. A recent European Commission report set out proposals for an EU-wide system of compulsory health warnings similar to those that have been carried on cigarette packets since the 1970s. The Scottish Executive signalled last month that it also wanted warning labels on drinks and advice on illnesses linked to excessive intake.

UPDATE: For further commentary on the subject have a read of Robert Joseph's take via his new blog - the Joseph Report.