(Photo: Anthony Behar/SipaUSA)(Sipa via AP Images)
On Wednesday, the Financial Times reported that Patrón Tequila was temporarily blocked from exporting liquor to the U.S. last month in a disagreement over additive-free messaging in its latest marketing campaign.
According to "people familiar with the matter," the Tequila Regulatory Council revoked Patrón's export certificate for four days in February. The move came as the Bacardi-owned brand debuted a nationwide advertising campaign touting its "no secret ingredients" additive-free recipe. Plastered onto billboards, truck wraps and transport hubs across states like New York and Illinois, the campaign featured slogans like “No Sweeteners. No Extracts. No Secrets.” and “Agave. Water. Time. Or What We Call Good Tequila.”
It was a bold statement. 100% Blue Weber agave tequila brands are not required to disclose the presence of substances like glycerin, oak extract and caramel coloring so long as they make up less than 1% of the total liquid. In recent years, the CRT has pushed back against brands that label themselves as "additive-free," going so far as to file a lawsuit against a non-profit dubbed the Additive-Free Alliance.
The story surrounding Patrón has not been confirmed by officials at Bacardi nor explicitly confirmed by the CRT. However, in a statement to the Financial Times, CRT Secretary of International Affairs Rodolfo Villarruel Franco said, “We require alcohol advertising and labelling to be grounded in facts and truth, and to not mislead consumers." The organization added that it was willing to apply "corrective measures" to brands that did not comply.
The Financial Times says that the regulator rescinded Bacardi's export ban after it removed mentions of "additive-free" from the Patrón website.
Behind the scenes, the situation has been fluctuating rapidly.
In October 2023, Patrón collaborated with the CRT to roll out an additive-free stamp of approval on its core tequila lineup. Patrón was the only brand to receive this officially endorsed designation. Though images of the golden stamps were released to the public, the packaging was never rolled out for reasons unknown.
Weeks after the CRT's seal was pulled, the organization publicly denounced independent additive-free labeling efforts. The announcement was likely made in reference to stickers briefly rolled out by the Additive-Free Alliance on brands like Cazcanes and Fortaleza.
“We consider that any scheme offered in the market to ‘certify’, ‘verify’ or ‘confirm’ in any language that a certain trademark is ‘ADDITIVES FREE’ represents an act contrary to good customs and practices and induces error or confusion to the Tequila consumer,” the CRT said.
The movement came to a standstill last October when the Additive-Free Alliance removed all "additive-free" designations from its database. According to co-founder Grover Sanschagrin, distillers had begun receiving letters from the CRT threatening disciplinary action if they continued participating in the program. Sanschagrin said that the additive-free list came to an end in an effort to "protect" brands "from their own regulator."
In light of the news, it was unclear if Patrón's idea to advertise — rather than label — itself as additive-free would draw the ire of the CRT. The question now appears to have been answered.
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