Wine e-labels: what applies since December 2023

Since 8 December 2023, wines in the EU need a nutrition declaration and a list of ingredients. Most of this may be provided via a QR code. This page summarises what has to be on the label and which rules apply to the e-label.

Last updated: 27 October 2026

Legal basis

The requirement comes from Regulation (EU) 2021/2117, which amended the Common Market Organisation Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013. It applies to wine and other grapevine products such as sparkling wine, liqueur wine and de-alcoholised wine. Comparable rules apply to aromatised wine products. In November 2023 the European Commission published a notice answering questions of interpretation, which the enforcement authorities follow.

When the particulars are required

What counts is the date of production. Wines produced on or after 8 December 2023 must carry the new particulars. Wines produced before that date may be sold until stocks are exhausted. In case of doubt, for example with sparkling wine, ask the competent wine control authority which date applies.

What has to be on the label

Even if nutrition values and ingredients are in the e-label, two particulars stay on the bottle:

  • Energy value in kilojoules and kilocalories per 100 ml. It may be abbreviated with the symbol “E”, for example “E (100 ml) = 303 kJ / 73 kcal”.
  • Allergens, introduced by “Contains:”. For most wines this is “Contains: sulphites”. If egg or milk products such as lysozyme, egg white or casein were used, they must be listed too, for example “lysozyme (egg)” or “casein (milk)”.

The particulars that were already mandatory, such as alcohol content, nominal volume, origin and bottler, remain on the label as well.

What may go in the e-label

The full nutrition declaration and the list of ingredients may be provided via the QR code. The nutrition declaration covers energy, fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt, each per 100 ml. The list of ingredients starts with “Ingredients:”, names the grapes and the additives used with their category and name, and emphasises allergens.

Requirements for the e-label

Strict rules apply to providing the information electronically:

  • The e-label must not collect or track user data. Cookies for statistics or advertising are therefore ruled out.
  • It must not be displayed together with advertising or sales information, and must not link to an online shop.
  • The information has to be available in a language easily understood by consumers in the countries where the wine is sold.
  • The e-label has to remain available for as long as the wine is on the market.

These points are the main reason not to simply put the information on the winery’s own website: such sites usually run analytics, and the shop is only a click away.

How to mark the QR code

The QR code has to make clear that it leads to ingredients and nutrition. According to the Commission notice, an “i” or another symbol alone is not enough. Use a reference in words, such as “Ingredients and nutrition”, right next to the code. There is no legal minimum size; codes from about 1 × 1 cm are read reliably by common smartphones.

How Weinlabels meets these requirements

Weinlabels e-labels set no cookies, use no analytics and contain no advertising or shop links. They are hosted on servers in Germany and remain available for five years after you cancel. Weinlabels calculates the nutrition values from your wine’s analysis.

Weinlabels is free. Nutrition, ingredients and QR code in one tool, with no subscription and no fee per code.

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Sources

This page is an overview and not legal advice. The regulations and the competent wine control authorities are authoritative.