The public consultation on the Irish Whiskey Technical File will open in the coming weeks.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) said it will be open for submissions for two months.

Irish whiskey is a geographical indication registered with the European Commission and must be produced in accordance with the Irish Whiskey Technical File.

The Irish Whiskey Technical File does not currently require the use of Irish grain in the production of Irish whiskey.

Consultation

DAFM told Agriland that when the public consultation closes, the department will then compile and conduct an assessment of the submissions.

"Once this is completed, there is a requirement for an 'opposition procedure’ to the proposed changes and updates to the product specification, which will take eight weeks," a DAFM spokesperson said.

"If there are no substantial objections, the accepted amendments will be categorised as either ‘standard’ (national) amendments, with others considered ‘union’ amendments which must be submitted to the EU Commission for consideration and opposition."

Use of Irish grain

DAFM said one of the issues that could be examined is whether imposing a requirement to use Irish grain in the production of Irish whiskey would be in accordance with EU single market principles.

"There are no obstacles at present to prevent an operator in Ireland from producing an Irish whiskey product made solely of Irish grains and declaring as such on the product label," DAFM said.

"Currently, some such products are already on the marketplace."

DAFM said that the composition of Irish whiskey varies by each product.

The department said the ratios of each grain type used is a "matter of commercial sensitivity for each producer and the department does not hold this information".

Brewing and distilling sector

The Irish Whiskey Association is the representative voice within Drinks Ireland working to promote, protect and represent the Irish Whiskey category globally.

According to the association, the brewing and distilling sector now employs 10,000 people across the island of Ireland.

It also "supports our agricultural partners by purchasing 300,000t of Irish grain annually".

In 2024, Irish whiskey export values surpassed €1 billion.