The following notice has been issued by the Food Standards Agency:
The public will wish to be aware that illicit Drop Vodka 70cl has been discovered on sale in the UK.
A number of contraventions have been identified with this product:
* The product does not contain enough alcohol to be called vodka. The Spirit & Drinks Regulations 2008 state that vodka should be no less than 37.5% ABV. Samples of Drop Vodka taken by local authorities have detected levels of 28.6% ABV, which is well below the advertised ABV stated on the bottle.
- There are a number of labelling issues, particularly the lack of manufacturer’s details for traceability purposes.
- There is a food safety concern in that products sampled by local authorities have identified the presence of Propan-2-ol and other substances that can be potentially damaging to health.
The levels of Propan-2-ol detected in the Drop Vodka product render the product a health risk. This makes the product unsafe for consumption under Article 14 of Regulation (EC) No. 178/2002.
No food business operator has been identified as the owner of the Drop Vodka brand, therefore distribution information is not available. Local authorities have typically found products on sale in small independent retailers, corner shops, petrol stations etc.
Photographs of two different Drop Vodka labels have been received. One proclaims to be bottled in Italy, the other in France. Drop Vodka, 70cl
Bottled in Italy or France
Main distinctive marks:
- The duty stamp does not fluoresce under UV light
- The duty reference on the illicit bottles A000000000618 belongs to Glen Catrine Bonded Warehouse Ltd. Drop Vodka is not a Glen Catrine product
- The barcode 0123456789 is not a valid bar code
- No spirit manufacturer's lot number on bottle
- No manufacturer's name and address on the label
- Front and rear labels are self-adhesive
- Punt mark on bottles show bottle made by 'Ol glassware'
- The general print quality of the labels is poor
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