Non-alcoholic beverages can’t be sold as gin, EU court rules
ECJ says non-alcoholic beverages cannot be marketed as gin under EU rules.
EU – The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that non-alcoholic beverages cannot be marketed or sold using the term “gin,” stating the designation is reserved exclusively for a specific category of alcoholic spirits under EU law.
The decision, delivered on 13 November, followed a case referred by a German court involving the company PB Vi Goods.
The dispute began when a German association for combating unfair competition filed a complaint against PB Vi Goods over its product “Virgin Gin Alkoholfrei,” which translates to “non-alcoholic Virgin Gin.”
The association argued that the naming violated EU regulations defining gin as a spirit drink made by flavouring agricultural ethyl alcohol with juniper berries and containing at least 37.5% alcohol by volume.
In its ruling, the ECJ confirmed that there is a “clear prohibition” in EU law on applying the term “gin” to beverages without alcohol.
The court stated that the legal name of the spirit category cannot be used for products that do not meet the prescribed standards, even if accompanied by clarifying terms such as “non-alcoholic.”
According to the court, the objective of the rule is to prevent consumer confusion regarding product composition and to protect compliant manufacturers from unfair competition. It stressed that the restriction does not prohibit the sale of non-alcoholic alternatives but prevents them from using legally protected designations.
The judgment comes at a time when EU lawmakers are considering broader rules on food and drink terminology. In October, the European Parliament adopted a negotiating position to limit the use of names such as “steak,” “sausage,” and “burger” to meat-based products.
The proposal includes defining meat as edible parts of animals and excluding cell-cultured items from using such terms.
The ECJ’s ruling is expected to influence how producers of alcohol-free alternatives market their products across the EU, reinforcing stricter compliance with spirit category definitions.
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