Fair AF Labelling — a new campaign led by broadcaster and beer writer Ben Gibbs — is calling for any drink at or below 0.5% ABV to be legally labelled alcohol-free.
Under current UK rules, a drink can only be called alcohol-free if it contains no more than 0.05% ABV, the strictest threshold of any country in the world. For scale, a ripe banana naturally contains several times that (roughly 0.2 to 0.4%), and gram for gram a fresh bread roll can hold more alcohol than a 0.5% beer. The internationally recognised standard for alcohol-free is 0.5%.
The campaign argues the 0.05% limit is straightforward for large multinational brewers to hit and market, but a costly technical barrier for the small independent breweries driving Britain’s fast-growing no- and low-alcohol sector. It also warns that the current wording misleads drinkers into believing a 0.5% beer is broadly comparable to a full-strength pint, when the alcohol content is negligible.
Aligning with the 0.5% international standard, Fair AF Labelling says, would give people honest, consistent labelling they can actually trust. A Parliamentary petition calling for a change can be signed here. It will be open until 3rd March, 2027.
“The UK has the strictest alcohol-free labelling law on earth, and it’s costing small breweries while confusing the very people it’s meant to protect,” said Gibbs.
“A ripe banana already breaks our 0.05% limit several times over — yet a 0.5% beer, the international standard, still can’t legally say alcohol-free. The government has consulted on this twice and agreed it should change. I’d just like them to get on and do it.”
