AOSTA, Italy — The 380,000 wheels of Fontina PDO cheese matured each year are tiny in number compared to the millions churned out by more famous rivals — but that doesn’t make the creamy cheese any less important to producers in Valle d’Aosta, a region nestled in the Italian Alps.  Fontina’s protected designation of origin (PDO) provides consumers at home and abroad a “guarantee of quality and of a short supply chain,” explained Stéphanie Cuaz, of the consortium responsible for protecting the cheese from cheap copycats, as she navigated a hairpin turn on the way to a mountain pasture. With fewer than a hundred cows, a handful of farm hands and a small house where milk is transformed into cheese, the pasture at the end of the winding road feels far away from global trade tussles its flagship product is embroiled in. The EU’s scheme to protect the names of local delicacies from replicas produced elsewhere has proved controversial in international trade negotiations. For instance, in 2023, free trade talks with Australia were swamped by complaints from its cheese producers railing against EU demands that they refrain from using household names like “Mozzarella di Bufala Campana” and “Feta.”  Fontina was caught in the crossfire, having been included in the list of names the EU wants protected Down Under. Fontina DOP Alpeggio is a variant of the cheese produced during the summer months using milk from cows grazing in alpine pastures up to 2,700 meters above sea level | Lucia Mackenzie/POLITICO. No such protections exist in the U.S., where in the state of Wisconsin alone, there are a dozen “fontina” producers, one of which won bronze at the World Cheese Awards in 2022.  Europe’s small-time food producers find themselves in a bind: their protected status is vital for promoting their traditional products abroad, but charges of protectionism have soured some trade negotiations. Nonetheless, many of the bloc’s trading partners clearly see the benefits of the system, baking in similar protections for their own products into trade deals. PROTECTION VS PROTECTIONISM Fontina cheese can only be labeled as such if several strict criteria are met. Cows of certain breeds need to be fed with hay of a certain caliber and, crucially, every step of the cheesemaking process must take place within the region’s borders.   For Cuaz, who grew up on a dairy farm in Doues, a small town of around 500 people perched on the valley side, the protection of the Fontina name is vital to keep farming alive and sufficiently paid in the region. Tucked up against the French and Swiss borders, Valle d’Aosta is Italy’s least populated region, home to just over 120,000 inhabitants speaking a mixture of Italian, French and the local Valdôtain dialect. Fontina — which with its distinctive nutty flavor can be enjoyed on a charcuterie board, in a fondue, or encased in a veal chop — is one of over 3,600 foods, wines, and spirits registered under the EU’s geographical indications (GI) system. This protects the names of products that are uniquely linked to a specific region. The idea is to make them easier to promote and keep small producers competitive. In the EU alone, GI products bring in €75 billion in annual revenue and command a price that’s 2.23 times higher than those without the status, the bloc’s Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen proclaimed earlier this year. He called the scheme a “true EU success story.” The GI system is predominantly used in gastronomic powerhouses like Italy and France, and Hansen hopes to promote uptake in the eastern half of the bloc.  Italy has the most geographical indications in the world, accounting for €20 billion in turnover, the country’s Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida pointed out, describing the system as an “extraordinary value multiplier.” ‘NOTHING MORE THAN A TRADE BARRIER’ While several trading partners apparently share the enthusiasm of Hansen and Lollobrigida  — the EU’s trade agreements with countries from South Korea to Central America and Canada include protections for selected GIs — others view the protections as, well, protectionist. The U.S. has long been the system’s most vocal critic, with the Trade Representative’s annual report on intellectual property protection calling it out as “highly concerning” and “harmful.” Washington argues that the rules undermine existing trademarks and that product names like “fontina,” “parmesan” and “feta” are common and shouldn’t be reserved for use by certain regions. That reflects the U.S. dairy industry’s resentment towards Europe’s GIs: Krysta Harden, U.S. Dairy Export Council president, argued they are “nothing more than a trade barrier dressed up as intellectual property protection.” Meanwhile, the National Milk Producers’ Federation blames the scheme, at least in part, for the U.S. agri-food trade deficit.  American opposition to the system doesn’t stop at its own trade relationship with the EU. The U.S. Trade Representative’s Office also accused the EU of pressuring trading partners to block certain imports and vowed to combat the bloc’s “aggressive promotion of its exclusionary GI policies.” DOUBLING DOWN Unfazed by the criticism, Hansen continues to tout geographical indications as vital in the EU’s ongoing trade negotiations with other countries.  The EU’s long-awaited trade accord with the Latin American Mercosur bloc is heading toward ratification and includes GI protections for both sides. Speaking in Brazil last month, Hansen went out of his way to praise his hosts for protecting canastra, a highland cheese, and cachaça, a sugarcane liquor, against imitations.  Fifty-eight of the GIs protected under the agreement are Italian, Lollobrigida told POLITICO. This protects Italy’s reputation for high-quality food, he said, and ensures “that Mercosur citizens receive top-quality products.” The EU recently concluded a deal with Indonesia which will protect more than 200 EU products, and a geographical indication agreement is actively being discussed in talks on a free-trade deal with India that both sides hope to wrap up this year. As negotiations with Australia pick up once again, the issue of GI cheeses is expected to return to the spotlight. The U.S. pushback on GIs in other countries has fallen on deaf ears, argued John Clarke, the EU’s former lead agriculture negotiator. He criticized detractors for peddling “specious arguments which bear no relationship to intellectual property rights.” American claims that some terms are universally generic are “illegitimate” and ultimately “very unsuccessful,” in Clarke’s view. “They came too late to the party,” he said, “and their arguments were not very convincing from a legal point of view.” CULTURE AND COMMERCE  The uptake of GIs in other countries demonstrates the additional value the schemes can bring for rural communities and cultural heritage, Clarke posited.  In Valle d’Aosta, the GI system “keeps people and maybe also young farmers linked to this region,” argued Cuaz, adding that young people leaving rural areas in favor of urban centers is a real problem for her region. From tournaments to find the “Queen” of the herd that are a highlight of summer weekends to the “Désarpa” parade marking the end of the season as cows return to the valley from their Alpine pastures, Fontina cheese production keeps traditions alive in the tiny region every year. The dairy industry even plays a role in making use of abandoned copper mines, where thousands of cheese wheels mature annually. Thousands of cheese wheels are matured the Valpelline warehouse, built in the tunnels of a former copper mine. | Lucia Mackenzie/POLITICO. Supporters of the GI scheme also point to the food and wine tourism opportunities it offers. Les Cretes vineyard, winery and tasting room represent one such success story.  The flavors imbued into traditional and native grape varieties by the soil of the Valle d’Aosta’s high-altitude vineyards justify its inclusion as a geographically protected product, explained Monique Salerno, who has worked for the family business for 15 years and is in charge of tastings and events. The premium price on the local wines is vital to keep the producers competitive, given that the steep vines need to be picked by hand, she added. The business expanded in 2017, building a tasting room to draw tourists to Aymavilles, the town with a population of just over 2,000 that houses much of the vineyard. TARIFF TROUBLE While American critics have, in Clarke’s view, “lost the war on terroir,” Europe’s small-time food producers are not immune to the rollercoaster of tit-for-tat tariffs that have dominated recent EU-U.S. trade negotiations.  Like the vast majority of European products heading to the U.S., cheese is subject to a 15 percent blanket tariff. In the meantime, however, organizational mishaps led to some temporary doubling of tariffs on Italian cheeses, angering major producers.  The whole saga has caused uncertainty, said Ermes Fichet, administrative manager of the Milk and Fontina Producers’ Cooperative.  The Les Cretes vineyard on the slopes surrounding Aymavilles. | Lucia Mackenzie/POLITICO The U.S. is Fontina’s largest overseas market, accounting for around 60 percent of direct exports. However, producers aren’t fearing for their livelihoods, yet, as most Fontina cheese isn’t exported at all: an estimated 95 percent of wheels are sent to distributors in Italy. Rather, the impact of U.S. trade policy is long term. The American market would in theory be able to absorb all of Fontina’s production, Fichet explains, but the sale of similar cheeses at lower prices there makes it difficult to expand market share.  According to figures released by the USDA’s statistics service, over 5.1 million kilos of “fontina” cheese was produced in Wisconsin alone in 2024. That comes out to a higher volume than the 3.1 million kilos of GI-certified Fontina originating in Valle d’Aosta annually.  And looking elsewhere isn’t an easy option for the small-time cheese makers, even if future trade agreements include GI recognition. While markets in countries like Saudi Arabia are growing, they would never close the gap left by U.S. producers if trade ties worsen, said Fichet.  Responding to the foreign detractors, he highlighted the benefits from the scheme at home. Fontina DOP “allows us to maintain the agricultural reality of certain places … it’s an extra reason to try to help those who are committed to carrying on with a product that is, let’s say, the little flower of the Valle d’Aosta.”

A non-alcoholic beverage may not be sold as gin, the Court of Justice of the EU ruled today in a case that could have wide-ranging consequences for a growing sector catering to health-conscious consumers. The case involved a drink being sold as Virgin Gin Alkolholfrei. The Luxembourg court ruled that wording violated an EU law that says gin should be produced with ethyl alcohol and juniper berries, with a minimum alcoholic strength by volume of 37.5 percent.  The law is meant to protect gin producers from competition and consumers against confusion, the court said in a statement. The gin judgment comes as plant-based meat products gear up for a potential labeling fight, depending on whether a controversial “veggie burger ban” makes it through inter-institutional negotiations. A German association for combating unfair competition brought the case against PB Vi Goods, which manufactures the gin copycat. A German court referred the case to the Court of Justice, which found a “clear prohibition in EU law” because the beverage does not contain alcohol. The product can be sold, but not as “gin,” regardless of whether or not it uses terms like “non-alcoholic” or “virgin.” The top EU court has upended consumer trends in the past: it ruled against calling plant-based products “milk,” “cream,” “butter,” “cheese” or “yogurt”’” in 2017.

PARIS — French lawmakers of a nervous disposition, look away now … a member of parliament wants to ban the sale of alcohol in the National Assembly bar! According to a report seen by POLITICO’s Paris Playbook, Emmanuel Duplessy, of the leftist Génération.s party, wants not only to stop the bar from selling booze but also to prohibit MPs from claiming alcohol as part of their food and drink expenses. The sale of alcohol “in a workplace raises many questions among the French,” Duplessy said. Duplessy isn’t the first MP to try and sober up French politics. In May, Green Party leader Cyrielle Chatelain suggested banning alcohol in parliament in the evenings. Arthur Delaporte, a Socialist MP who heads the association that manages the National Assembly’s eateries, said prices in the bar had increased, but if alcohol is excluded from expense claims for lawmakers, then the same rule should apply to “all companies for it to be acceptable.” That, he added, would “cause a stir among lawyers.” Alcohol sales in the lower house of parliament’s bar generated around €100,000 in revenue last year (although there was a pause of around three months in legislative business after the dissolution of parliament). French lawmakers might want to ask their Belgian colleagues for tips about non-alcoholic debates. Beer and wine have been banned in the Belgian federal parliament’s cafeteria since May.

Alcohol has been enjoyed in societies for thousands of years, playing a role in celebrations and gatherings across the world. While misuse continues to cause harm, it’s encouraging to see that, according to World Health Organization data, trends are moving in the right direction. Consumers are better informed and increasingly aware of the benefits of moderation.   While Diageo is only relatively young — founded in 1997 — our roots run deep. Many of our brands date back centuries, some as far back as the 1600s. From iconic names such as Guinness and Johnnie Walker to modern innovations like Tanqueray 0.0, we are proud to continue that legacy by building and sustaining exceptional brands that resonate across generations and geographies. We want to be one of the best performing, most trusted and respected consumer products companies in the world — grounded in a strong sense of responsibility.  That means being transparent about the challenges, proactive in promoting responsible drinking, and collaborative in shaping the future of alcohol policy. We are proud of the progress made, but we know there is more to do. Lasting change requires a whole-of-society approach, bringing together governments, health experts, civil society and the private sector.   We believe a more balanced, evidence-based dialogue is crucial; one that recognizes both the risks of harmful drinking and the opportunities to drive positive change. Our brands are woven into cultural and social traditions around the world, and the industry contributes significantly to employment, local economies and public revenues. Recognizing this broader context is essential to shaping effective, proportionate and collaborative alcohol policies. Public-private collaboration brings together the strengths of different sectors, and these partnerships help scale impactful programs.  > We believe a more balanced, evidence-based dialogue is crucial; one that > recognizes both the risks of harmful drinking and the opportunities to drive > positive change. Across markets, consumers are increasingly choosing to drink more mindfully. Moderation is a long-term trend — whether it’s choosing a non-alcoholic alternative, enjoying fewer drinks of higher quality, or exploring the choice ready-to-drink formats offer, people are drinking better, not more, something Diageo has long advocated. Moderation is not a limitation; it’s a mindset. One of the ways we’re leading in this space is through our expanding non-alcoholic portfolio, including the acquisition of Ritual Beverage Company in the US and our investment in Guinness 0.0. This growing diversity of options empowers individuals to choose what’s right for them, in the moment. Moderation is about choice, and spirits can also offer creative ways to moderate, such as mixing alcoholic and non-alcoholic ingredients to craft serves like the ‘lo-groni’, or opting for a smaller measure in your gin and tonic.  Governments are increasingly taking proportionate approaches to alcohol regulation, recognizing the value of collaboration and evidence-based policy. There’s growing interest in public-private partnerships and regulatory rationality, working together to achieve our shared goal to reduce the harmful use of alcohol. In the UK, underage drinking is at its lowest since records began, thanks in part to initiatives like Challenge 25, a successful public-private collaboration that demonstrates the impact of collective, targeted action.  > Moderation is not a limitation; it’s a mindset. Diageo has long championed responsible drinking through campaigns and programs that are measurable and scalable. Like our responsible drinking campaign, The Magic of Moderate Drinking, which is rolled out across Europe, and our programs such as Sober vs Drink Driving, and Wrong Side of the Road, which are designed to shift behaviors, not just raise awareness. In Ireland, we brought this commitment to life at the All Together Now music, art, food and wellness festival with the launch of the TO.0UCAN pub in 2024, the country’s first-ever non-alcoholic bar at a music festival. Serving Guinness 0.0 on draught, it reimagined the traditional Irish pub experience, offering a fresh and inclusive way for festival-goers to enjoy the full energy and atmosphere of the event without alcohol.  Another example comes from our initiative Smashed. This theatre-based education program, developed by Collingwood Learning and delivered by a network of non-government organizations, educates young people and helps them understand the dangers of underage drinking, while equipping them with the knowledge and confidence to resist peer pressure. Diageo sponsors and enables Smashed to reach millions of young people, teachers and parents across the globe, while ensuring that no  alcohol brands of any kind are mentioned. In 2008, we launched DRINKiQ, a first-of-its-kind platform to help people understand and be informed about alcohol, its effects, and how to enjoy it responsibly. Today, DRINKiQ is a dynamic, mobile-first platform, localized in over 40 markets. It remains a cornerstone of our strategy.  > Diageo has long championed responsible drinking through campaigns and programs > that are measurable and scalable. In the UK, our partnership with the Men’s Sheds Association supports older men’s wellbeing through DRINKiQ. Most recently, this collaboration expanded with Mission: Shoulder to Shoulder, a nationwide initiative where Shedders are building 100 buddy benches to spark over 200,000 conversations annually. The campaign promotes moderation and connection among older men, a cohort most likely to drink at increasing or higher risk levels. Across all our partnerships, we focus on the right message, in the right place, at the right time. They also reflect our belief that reducing harmful drinking requires collective action.  Our message is simple: Diageo is ready to be a proactive partner. Let’s build on the progress made and stay focused on the shared goal: reducing harm. With evidence-based policies, strong partnerships and public engagement, we can foster a drinking culture that is balanced, responsible and sustainable. Together, we can make real progress — for individuals, communities and society as a whole. 

Mortality rates for young adults have increased in Eastern Europe over the past decade, despite global death rates falling. Drug-use, suicide and war are among the causes of death that are rising in Eastern Europe, while earthquakes and climate-related disasters have also pushed up death rates in the region. The Global Burden of Disease report — published in The Lancet on Sunday and presented at the World Health Summit in Berlin — analyzed data from more than 200 countries and territories to estimate the leading causes of illness, mortality and early death worldwide from 1990 to 2023. Between 2000 and 2023, there was a notable rise in deaths among younger adults in Eastern Europe caused by HIV, self-harm and personal violence. In Central Europe, deaths from mental disorders and eating disorders have also risen sharply among teens over the decade. This reflects a global trend — a rise in mental health disorders, with worldwide rates of anxiety increasing by 63 percent and of depression by 26 percent. “The rise of depression and anxiety is very concerning,” coauthor Chris Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, told POLITICO. “We hear a lot of debate as to what the root causes are … but we certainly need to pay attention to try to figure out what’s driving the rise. “ The report shows some overall positive trends: Global mortality rates dropped by 67 percent between 1950 and 2023 and global life expectancy in 2023 was more than 20 years higher compared to 1950. But despite the improvements, the study also highlights “an emerging crisis” of higher death rates in teenagers and young adults in certain regions. In North America and Latin America, for example, deaths among young people increased significantly from 2011 to 2023, mainly due to suicide, drug overdose and high consumption of alcohol. In sub-Saharan Africa, they increased due to infectious diseases and unintentional injuries. In Eastern Europe, the largest increases in mortality were among those aged 15-19 year and 20-24 years, with rates increasing by 54 percent and 40 percent, respectively, between 2011 and 2023. The report also tracks leading causes of mortality worldwide. It found that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) now account for nearly two-thirds of the world’s total mortality and morbidity, led by ischemic heart disease, stroke and diabetes. In particular, in lower-middle and upper-middle income countries there is a “very rapid transition towards non-communicable diseases,” said Murray, driven by factors such as an aging population, slow or no progress on tobacco and air pollution, and rising levels of obesity. In Central Europe and North America, these chronic diseases were primarily driven by an increase in drug use disorders, according to the report. Diabetes and kidney disease also largely contributed to the increase in Central Europe, along with several other regions. “Addressing these trends requires targeted public health interventions, improved health-care access, and socioeconomic policies to mitigate the underlying risk factors,” the report authors urge. The researchers estimate that half of all deaths and disability could be prevented by tackling high levels of blood sugar, overweight and obesity, for example.    The report also points out how conflict has “begun to shift from north Africa and the Middle East to central Europe, eastern Europe, and central Asia,” in recent years due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. This has led to a rise in injury-related deaths. Palestine had the highest mortality rate due to conflict and terrorism of any country in the world. While injury-related deaths caused by specific natural disasters, such as the 2023 earthquake in Turkey and the 2022-23 heatwaves in Europe, are also on the rise. “In central and eastern Europe, heatwaves have been occurring more frequently over the past decade,” the authors said.

HORSENS, Denmark — Estonia is opposed to a push by the European Union to take further action to restrict kids’ access to social media, its digital minister told POLITICO in an interview. The intervention comes as most European Union countries fall in line behind plans for a digital age of majority across the EU, which could restrict children below a certain age from accessing social media platforms and would be the strongest move yet to protect kids online. A declaration expressing support for the general idea of a digital age of majority was tabled at a ministerial meeting in Denmark on Friday. Estonia and Belgium declined to sign, while the rest of the EU countries, plus Norway and Iceland, did. “Estonia believes in an information society and including young people in the information society,” Estonia’s minister of justice and digital affairs, Liisa-Ly Pakosta, told POLITICO. Tallinn is in favor of enforcing existing rules designed to offer protections, such as the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, rather than changing the current age restrictions, Pakosta said. That bans children under 13 from consenting to their data being processed, with countries able to increase that threshold. An age limit on social media would be a “very easy thing to do,” but countries should instead invest in better education for the digital age, she said. “Estonia believes in an information society and including young people in the information society,” said Pakosta. If one in 10 children has “problematic” use of social media, as the declaration cites, then the government should figure out what is not working for these children, she added. Not setting a minimum age threshold for social media is an “easy way out,” because “it is a difficult decision to make and I can see it on a national level,” Caroline Stage Olsen, Denmark’s minister for digital government, told POLITICO when asked about Estonia’s decision not to sign the EU-wide commitment. A digital age of majority may be a “radical move” but it is “needed when we look at the numbers of our children’s well-being,” said Stage Olsen. Denmark has spearheaded the declaration as part of its presidency of the Council of the EU. Belgium’s minister for public modernization, Vanessa Matz, said in a statement that the country did not sign the declaration because the Flanders region vetoed it. But she said her presence at the meeting in Denmark demonstrates Belgium’s “determination to advance this fight for a safer internet.” While the Netherlands signed the declaration, it also expressed reservations about the content, particularly regarding provisions on age verification. It’s an “intrusive” measure that should always be proportionately applied, Digitalisation Minister Eltje van Marum said in an interview. “For services or products with legal age restrictions and proven harm to children — such as alcohol and tobacco — the use of age verification is more easily justified, and in some cases even legally required, such as with online gambling,” he said. The criticism follows an escalation of the debate about EU-wide action. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last month came out strongly in favor, and convened a panel of experts to study whether and how to implement a social media ban. But legal experts agree it’s up to national governments, not the EU, to set age restrictions. The Danish government announced plans this week to introduce parental controls for several social media platforms for children under the age of 15. Tech industry lobbies and child rights groups have expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of social media bans.

BRUSSELS — Ursula von der Leyen is so set on getting her grandkids off social media she forgot to do her homework. The European Commission chief made waves in recent weeks when she came out in favor of a European Union minimum age for using social media — twice. Citing strong pressure from EU capitals for a “digital majority” age, von der Leyen said at an event in New York that “as a mother of seven children, and grandmother of five, I share their view.” “We all agree that young people should reach a certain age before they smoke, drink or access adult content. The same can be said for social media,” she said. But von der Leyen has so far overlooked a simple fact: It’s up to national governments, not the EU, to set age restrictions for alcohol and tobacco. The Commission can coordinate rules about health but cannot harmonize them, according to the legal treaties of the bloc. “There is a significant question of whether [banning social media] is even something that the European Union has the power to do,” said Peter Craddock, partner at Keller & Heckman law firm in Brussels. Craddock currently offers legal services to social media companies. Von der Leyen said in her annual State of the Union speech that she will task a panel of experts to study whether to implement a social media ban and how to do it.   There’s a lot to figure out, such as how much “autonomy” to give EU countries and whether they should be allowed to set their own age, whether “it’s a full ban or a partial ban for certain functionalities or certain types of interactions,” Craddock said. Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier in June said that an EU-wide ban “is not what the European Commission is doing. It’s not where we are heading to. Why? Because this is the prerogative of our member states.” For many, that hasn’t changed. “Currently, we don’t see any legal basis for a harmonized social media ban for children at EU level,” said Fabiola Bas Palomares, lead policy and advocacy officer at Eurochild, a children’s rights group. MANY LAWS, NO SOLUTIONS The EU’s flagship privacy regulation, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), was one legal route the Commission previously suggested as a possible avenue. The GDPR sets the age of 13 as the lowest possible age when minors can consent to their personal data being processed — something that happens on all social media platforms. But the law allows for different countries to raise the bar. But experts have pointed out this doesn’t really work as an instrument to impose a digital majority age.   The GDPR sets the age of 13 as the lowest possible age when minors can consent to their personal data being processed — something that happens on all social media platforms. | Nicolas Guyonnet/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images Craddock pointed out that a country can end up in a situation where laws on processing personal data are “less permissive” than access to social media, or vice versa. “Then you have to be able to justify that,” he said. The GDPR still shows that EU legislators “were able to at least have a range” of ages for restrictions, said Urs Buscke, senior legal policy officer at umbrella consumer organization BEUC. She said this is where things could go for social media restrictions too. Another legal avenue is a revision of the EU’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive, a law that applies to video-sharing platforms — which effectively covers most social media. The law will be reviewed next year and stronger protections for minors are on the table.  But, in EU speak, that law is a directive and not a regulation, meaning countries have a lot of leeway in how to apply it. It is also focused on keeping kids away from adult content, not off social media altogether, said Bas Palomares. There are guidelines under the Digital Services Act, but those guidelines are non-binding and help platforms comply with the EU’s landmark online safety law. Released this summer, the latest version still leaves age restrictions up to EU countries. The guidelines are reviewed annually, so the Commission could look to tighten the screws on platforms next year. But Regnier stressed last week that the Digital Services Act “is not the legal basis that will allow us to set the minimum age” for social media. There’s also the Digital Fairness Act, an upcoming revamp of consumer law, which will include provisions on protecting vulnerable consumers, including minors. Buscke, who specializes in consumer law, said this is unlikely to include a social media ban. Craddock said it’s too late to tack a social media ban onto that revamp as consultations are already ongoing and such a measure would require large-scale studies. CAN THEY, SHOULD THEY? Warnings about the health dangers of kids’ addictions to social media have piled up — from the EU’s top leadership and governments all the way to health authorities and tech regulators. But despite the momentum, some experts doubt an outright ban is the right way to go. Bas Palomares said a ban is incongruous with children’s rights to “protection, information, education, freedom of expression, play” which are “substantially enabled” by social media. “A social media ban would mean a disproportionate restriction of children’s rights and perhaps push them toward situations of greater risk and lower supervision,” she said. “Before resorting to arbitrary age restrictions, the EU should focus on leveraging and complementing the tools we already have.”

On the edge of Burgenland, Austria, Werner Michlits Jr. is busy harvesting grapes. That’s a welcome distraction from the waiting game EU-U.S. trade negotiations have put him and other winemakers in, wondering if they’ll lose their most lucrative market. Winemakers in Europe and their import and distribution partners in the U.S. are facing twin crises: a 15 percent tariff on European wine entering the U.S. and a declining dollar. Many American importers stocked up on wine ahead of an Aug. 1 tariff deadline, leaving them cash-strapped for the next few months and placing winemakers in a holding pattern while trade negotiations continue. Michlits, who runs the Meinklang farm and winery with his wife and parents, exports more than a third of its wine to the U.S. Some importers have asked if he can lower prices to offset tariffs. “But it’s impossible. We are already at our maximum,” he said. “It’s a little bit sad, because we have so much invested in this relationship. In the end, it’s the consumers in America that have to pay, or they will drink other wines.”  European exporters have long benefited from tariff-free access to the American market on most alcohol and had hoped they would win an exemption in the trade deal struck this summer. A 15 percent rate isn’t as bad as it could have been. President Donald Trump at one point threatened 200 percent.  “From one day to the next, our exports stopped for an entire month,” said Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, secretary-general of European Committee of Wine Companies, or CEEV, which represents EU wine companies.   But it’s still significant. CEEV estimates that the wine industry could lose €800 million to €1 billion over the next year. It’s not only that Europeans will stop sending wines, but producers will also earn less on the wines they are sending.  Lamberto Frescobaldi, one of the largest wine producers in Italy, said the average price of Italian wine being sent to the U.S. has dropped 10 percent over the past three months.  “It kills me to think we would be less involved in the U.S. For many Italians, the U.S. has been the country of home, opportunity. It is a very, very difficult thing that we are not a good guest any longer there,” said the 30th-generation Florentine winemaker. ‘A FRAGILE AND SCARY TIME’  Across the ocean, it’s killing their counterparts, too.  “A wine that a restaurant bought in November of last year is going to be 35 percent more expensive this year,” said Ben Aneff, president of the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance, citing tariffs and the plunging dollar. “It’s hard to overstate the problem we expect that to start causing.”  European winemakers exported more than €4.88 billion worth of wine in 2024 to the U.S., their largest destination market. In parallel, for every dollar generated by wine exporters, American distribution and hospitality sectors earn $4.50, the European industry estimates. Importers and distributors have been hit hardest so far. Aneff said that European wines account for 75 percent of the industry’s profits. Most distributors have halted all hiring, and some have started layoffs. Harry Root, owner of Grassroots Wine in Charleston, South Carolina, focuses on small, family-owned wineries around the world, with about 60 percent of them in Europe. At this time last year his business was growing 13 percent year-on-year. This year, sales are flat. “And the only reason it’s flat is because we’ve had competitors going out of business. It’s a fragile and scary time,” Root said. His strategy for the rest of the year is to be more conservative with his European buying. But like most importers, he bought as much as possible before tariffs took effect.  BAD FOR EUROPE, BAD FOR THE U.S. This causes other issues though, particularly for American wineries.  “Subsequently, we have had to slow purchase from American producers because we have so much capital tied up in tariffs and EU wine,” said Root.  The way wine sales work in the U.S. goes back to the Prohibition era a century ago, when most states implemented what’s known as the three-tier system. Wineries sell to distributors, who sell to retailers and restaurateurs, who sell to consumers. Even if a retailer really wants a certain domestic wine, or has a good relationship with a winemaker, they cannot go out and purchase that wine on their own. “No other product in the country is sold this way,” said Aneff. “Distributors, who sometimes make up to 65 percent of revenue from imported wine, when they get a huge tariff bill, they buy less, including less American wine. Last time this happened, we had U.S. wineries who lost their distribution in states like New York because distributors had financial issues caused by tariffs.” That’s why American wine groups including Napa Valley Vintners, The Wine Institute, Wine America, and the National Association of Wine Retailers have sent a joint letter to Trump asking him to reconsider his European tariffs. They warned that the 15 percent tariff rate could reduce American alcohol sales by nearly $2 billion and put 25,000 U.S. jobs at risk.  “We import about $4.5 billion of European wine a year, resulting in $23 billion worth of sales in the U.S.,” said Aneff. “That surplus goes to the 6,000 importers and distributors who have employees, to independent retailers, to hundreds of thousands of restaurants and their employees. There is no other imported product that would have economics like that.” The wine world is in trouble not only because of tariffs. Climate change and extreme weather events and declining consumption are threatening the industry in both Europe and the U.S. But those are long-term problems, while this is immediate. WHAT CONSUMERS WANT The next few months will be telling as consumers grapple with higher prices. Wine is not fungible: the whole point of terroir is that wine is distinct, and of a place. A Pinot Noir from Burgundy is not the same as a Pinot Noir from Oregon. Both can be fantastic, but they’re different. “The flat reality is that when someone wants a burgundy from France, that’s what they want. If you go to the grocery store and want strawberries and they say ‘Here’s tomatoes,’ that’s not the same thing,” said Aneff. He’s had to raise prices on effectively everything at Tribeca Wine Merchants, his wine shop in New York City, to offset tariffs — even on U.S. wines.  But not everyone sees doomsday ahead. Peter Eizel, wine buyer at Martha’s Vineyard, a busy wine shop in Grand Rapids, Michigan, said he thinks consumers are willing to pay a couple dollars more for European wines.  He stocked up earlier this year, but there are some bottles you can only buy in certain seasons, like Beaujolais Nouveau. He ordered his cases a few weeks ago and said wines that he would normally sell for $10 will go for $11.99. He expects them to still fly off the shelves.  “If I said to someone, ‘Well the price of X, Y, Z wine is gonna go up $2 or $5, but I have this other wine from this country over here and it’s quality-wise about the same, and I can get it to you $4 cheaper,’ my customers will say, ‘I don’t care that it’s cheaper, it tastes different,’” he said.  The organizers of Vinitaly, the world’s largest wine show, are betting he’s right. Vinitaly has run in Verona for 58 years, but this October will stage its fair in Chicago for the second time. Adolfo Rebughini, general manager of Veronafiere, which organizes Vinitaly, expects about 1,600 U.S. buyers in Chicago this year — a strong number despite the situation.  “We’re going full steam ahead with the U.S. because it is such a critical market for Italian wine producers,” Rebughini said.  Italian wine exports to the U.S. account for roughly €2 billion per year, according to Rebughini. Veronafiere estimates the Italian wine sector could lose €317 million per year, but if the dollar keeps weakening that could reach €450 million.  Certain wines are more at risk. Sixty percent of all Moscato d’Asti is exported to the U.S., 48 percent of all Pinot Grigio and 46 percent of all Chianti. Some European wineries are looking outside the U.S., particularly to Canada, Mexico and Brazil. They welcome the EU’s deal with the South American Mercosur bloc and are excited about a prospective free-trade accord with India, where wine is currently taxed at 150 percent nationally, plus state taxes. But any benefit from those deals could be years away.  “We try to compensate with other markets, but there is no way that any other trade alternative that the EU could have could compensate for the losses of the U.S.” said Recarte of CEEV. “We understand that the Commission has been supporting us strongly, asking wines and spirits to have a special status in the second package.” Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič told European lawmakers last week that he was working to expand exemptions on the 15 percent U.S. tariffs to include wine and spirits, signaling that no progress has yet been made.  For now, winemakers are living in limbo.  “We all still hope this disappears as fast as it appeared,” said Michlits, pausing the harvest for a rain break. “We all want tariffs to go away.”

Poland wants to ban shop booze sales at night to curb excessive drinking, cut crime and prevent ill health, after Warsaw city tried and failed to outlaw them. Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s coalition partners — The Left and centrist Poland 2050 — have submitted legislative proposals including broad alcohol advertising bans, outlawing off-license sales from at least 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. and curbs on alcohol sales at petrol stations and online. The coalition partners say these measures, consistent with World Health Organization recommendations, are among the most effective tools to prevent alcohol-related poor health, such as cancer and mental health disorders. Latvia enforced similar measures from August. EU health data places Poland among the bloc’s worst performers on alcohol-related mortality: The country ranked second in the EU for alcohol-attributable deaths, behind Slovenia, in 2022, Eurostat said in March. The push for a nationwide ban follows the collapse of plans for a citywide proposal in Warsaw, after the local council threw out the measure over failure to agree. Warsaw’s failed attempt highlights the divergence between political groups on such public health measures, even inside Tusk’s ruling coalition. Councilors rebelled against the proposal tabled by their own mayor, Rafał Trzaskowski, arguing it impinged civil liberties. Trzaskowski pledged to keep trying to institute the ban.   It also comes as global leaders failed to agree to a political declaration to curb chronic diseases, such as those caused by drinking, underscoring the difficulty in agreeing to proven public health measures in a politically divided arena. In Poland, Warsaw city’s policy failure came despite overwhelming support among the local Varsovians when the city hall had tried to gauge the mood among people. Warsaw’s failed attempt highlights the divergence between political groups on such public health measures, even inside Donald Tusk’s ruling coalition. | Jonathan Raa/Getty Images Joanna Wicha, an MP for The Left, told POLITICO many local governments often lack determination and courage to ban nighttime booze sales. “That is why a top-down ban is needed,” she said. She hinted Tusk’s backing could help make the bans reality.  Currently, the proposals are undergoing public consultation and the parliament is expected to begin work on them in late October or early November, she said. SATURATED Poland is awash with booze shops. There were nearly 119,000 shops selling alcohol in Poland at the end of 2023, from small privately owned stores to large grocery chains, to 24-hour gas stations, Poland’s health ministry said in January. By contrast, Sweden has 900 alcohol stores, one per roughly 11,000 people, compared with one for every 320 people in Poland. To date, some 180 Polish municipalities already operate some form of nighttime prohibition, including in Kraków — Poland’s top tourist destination. Warsaw eventually ended up passing trial bans in two of the city’s 18 districts, but critics say it’s nowhere near effective. In locations where bans have been in place, police reports say the effects have been positive — less crime, more security in the streets and fewer patients at emergency wards — according to local media. “I would prefer local governments to follow the example of those that consistently try to counter the effects of what I call ‘liberal alcoholism,’ Especially in big cities, the presence of drunk people late at night near homes or in city centers is anything but pleasant,” Tusk said Sept. 22. The Left’s draft would ban sales at petrol stations and in long-term rehabilitation facilities and impose a 10 p.m.–6 a.m. national ban, with the option for local councils to widen the restriction to start at 9 p.m. and end at 9 a.m. It would also mandate age checks for every purchase and forbid selling below the combined level of excise and VAT, as is often the case in supermarket promotions. Poland 2050 also wants to let local authorities extend bans to 9 a.m. and to adjust licenses that have not been changed in 23 years. FEW INCENTIVES TO DRINK LESS The country’s National Center for Counteracting Addictions, or KCPU, a government agency coordinating policies on drug and alcohol abuse, estimates the social cost from alcohol in Poland at roughly 93 billion złoty (€21.8 billion) a year, compared with just 14 billion złoty in excise revenues. Poland’s per-capita consumption of pure alcohol stood at 8.8 liters in 2024, dropping steadily from 9.7 liters in 2021 due to lower beer consumption, according to KCPU data. Spirits, meanwhile, have held steady. WHO data shows Poles drink more than the bloc’s average. Cheap booze may be a reason: In 2024, an average monthly wage would buy about 2,103 half-liter bottles of beer — the highest since at least 2002. Affordability of other alcohol types has also been rising. By contrast, Sweden has 900 alcohol stores, one per roughly 11,000 people, compared with one for every 320 people in Poland. | Xavi Lopez/Getty Images The drinks industry has mobilized against sweeping curbs. “The proposed bill is a populist overregulation drafted in a wave of emotion and a chaotic set of changes that do not account for consumption trends or market realities,” Browary Polskie said in a statement. The brewers’ lobby argues beer volumes have been sliding for years: Sales have fallen some 15 percent over six years, and in the first nine months of this year the category declined a further 7-8 percent, while beer prices rose around 45 percent in recent years. Browary Polskie also complained that the draft would sweep in nonalcoholic beer — a product that, they say, helps reduce alcohol intake — and hit domestic brewers disproportionately. “Entrepreneurs are again surprised by legislative initiatives that threaten business stability,” Karol Stec, head of the spirits industry employers’ group, told the national newswire PAP.

BRUSSELS — EU exporters of wine and spirits will be able to sell their booze in Indonesia — but the bloc wants to keep it quiet. After years of talks, the EU and Indonesia announced Tuesday morning that they’d concluded negotiations on a trade deal, and Jakarta agreed for the first time to open up its alcohol market to Europe. However, under pressure from negotiators in Indonesia — the world’s largest Muslim-majority country — Brussels has agreed not to make a fuss about it. There’s not a single mention of it in the Commission’s official communications on the deal. “We are not publicizing it too loudly because of the sensitivity for our partners,” a senior EU official told POLITICO. The official was granted anonymity to speak freely, as were others quoted in this piece. “You asked the question, so I’m answering — but we didn’t want this in the headlines.” Behind the scenes, EU negotiators describe a tense balancing act — securing commercial wins for European exporters while treading carefully around Indonesia’s strict cultural and religious stance on alcohol.  “Some delegates on the other side were like, ‘I’m risking my life doing this deal,’” said another EU official, describing how their counterparts asked to avoid publicizing the alcohol-related provisions and omit them completely in any form of communication. A QUIET UNCORKING The quotas are modest — 1,985 tonnes for wine and 400 tonnes for spirits — and come with a duty of 5 percent. But in a country where alcohol imports have long been taboo, even this incremental market access marks a symbolic shift. The deal was struck using tariff rate quotas (TRQs), which allow a fixed volume of goods to enter at lower tariffs, with higher rates of 90 percent on wine and 150 percent on spirits kicking in beyond that threshold. While the quotas themselves are small, they represent a long-sought entry point into Indonesia for European producers.  To further downplay the move, EU officials even opted to present the volumes in tonnes — rather than the more industry-standard hectolitres — in what one EU official said was a deliberate attempt to “keep the numbers looking smaller.” According to another EU official, Jakarta even offered to give the EU the booze quotas. “It’s a huge concession to get them from Indonesia, which never offered concessions on alcohol to any partner,” the official said. BOOZE AND BALI Indonesia has one of the lowest alcohol consumption levels in Southeast Asia — just 0.1 liters of pure alcohol per capita per year. Access to alcohol is highly restricted outside of major cities and tourist enclaves, and public sentiment on liberalization is overwhelmingly negative. But in Bali — the country’s most tourism-heavy province — demand for alcohol is anything but symbolic. With more than 1.53 million Australians visiting Indonesia in 2024 — up 17 percent from the previous year — European negotiators made a clear pitch: Target tourist hubs like Bali, where alcohol is already flowing, and supply them with European products. “We aim at targeting tourists there,” the first EU senior official said. The Indonesian embassy did not reply to a request for comment. The result of the agreement is a diplomatic sleight-of-hand: a win for European exporters — just not one Brussels is boasting about. But with exporters eyeing the opportunity, the bottle may be too open to cork back.