The body representing the all-island Irish whiskey industry is lobbying members of the US Congress for enhanced protections for the product stateside.
A delegation from the Irish Whiskey Association met with members of Congress – which includes the House of Representatives and the Senate – in the run up to St. Patrick’s Day.
The association has lodged a petition with the US Trade and Tax Bureau (TTB) in Washington D.C. to seek further protections for the Irish product, and is campaigning for senators and representatives to support the petition.
Although whiskey from Ireland has geographical identification in 60 markets – which ensures that anything labelled as Irish whiskey must have been produced in Ireland – the US is not one of these markets, despite it being the destination for most of Ireland’s whiskey exports.
While Irish whiskey is considered a ‘distinctive product of Ireland’ in the US, businesses can still put whiskey on the market which may have labels with phrases and imagery suggesting it comes from Ireland when it doesn’t.
The first member of Congress to send a letter to the TTB backing the Irish Whiskey Association’s petition was Richie Neal, a member of the House of Representative for the state of Massachusetts.
Neal is a member of the House of Representatives’ Ways and Means Committee, a highly influential committee dealing with issues of taxation and revenue (similar to the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee). He is also the co-chairperson of the Friends of Ireland Caucus in the House.
Speaking at a reception for US politicians and government staff, Neal said that Irish whiskey had seen “phenomenal growth” in the country.
He also drew attention to the all-island nature of the industry here, referencing his efforts to promote the Northern Ireland peace process in the 1990s.
Speaking at the same event, director of the Irish Whiskey Association, Eoin Ó Catháin, said: “The US has a longstanding distinction as Irish whiskey’s largest market. [This product] is a premium, world-class product and along with being a vital sector of the Irish economy and agri-food exports, it is an internationally-recognised emblem of Ireland’s cultural heritage.
“It’s heartening to see this celebration of whiskey from across the island of Ireland enjoy bipartisan support from US politicians,” he added.
95% of whiskey produced in Ireland is destined for international markets and the total export value of Irish whiskey in 2023 was €875 million. Roughly half of these exports were to the US and around 60 million bottles of Irish whiskey were sold in the US in 2023.