Caribbean Rum Producers are now way ahead of many of their international counterparts with the introduction of new labelling on Caribbean Rum Products that will increase the information provided to consumers.

According to the West Indies Rum & Spirits Association – WIRSPA – this underscores a commitment by rum producers to advocate and educate about the dangers of excessive consumption.

According to Chairman of WIRSPA, Komal Samaroo, who heads Guyanese conglomerate Demerara Distillers, “there is no question that an unacceptably high number of persons in our communities have a problem with the excessive use of alcohol, and this has a negative impact on health. We also have major concerns about access to alcohol by underage youth. We fully accept that we have a role to play in this and our labelling commitment is one small but important part of that commitment“.

“By providing more information on labels”, he added, “we educate and empower personal choice”.

CEO of WIRSPA, Vaughn Renwick said “this is a ground-breaking commitment by rum brands – it takes time to design new labels and to phase out old stock – and sometimes even bottles have to be changed. It’s an expensive process.” Renwick added “We’re pleased to see that some producers have been able to implement the changes on some brands already, especially bearing in mind the tremendous financial and logistical challenges posed by the COVID pandemic.”