spiritsEUROPE WELCOMES TURNBERRY IMPLEMENTATION, CALLS FOR EU SPIRITS TO BE PRIORITISED IN NEXT PHASE
Brussels, 1 July 2026 - spiritsEUROPE welcomes the entry into force today of the EU legislative acts implementing the European Union’s tariff commitments under the Turnberry agreement. This important milestone restores greater certainty and predictability for businesses engaged in transatlantic trade and confirms the EU’s commitment to delivering on the agreement reached with the United States.
While marking an important step forward, implementation of these commitments is part of a broader process, with the Turnberry agreement establishing a platform for continued dialogue between the EU and the United States. In their Joint Statement of August, both sides also committed to consider additional sectors and products for inclusion in the list of those eligible for Most Favoured Nation (MFN) treatment, recognising that further progress should focus on areas of importance to both economies and value chains. spiritsEUROPE calls on both sides to ensure that European spirits are given appropriate priority in these next-stage discussions, with the objective of returning to zero.
“Today’s implementation is a welcome milestone that strengthens stability in transatlantic trade,” said Mark Titterington, Director General of spiritsEUROPE. “The EU and US spirits sectors have long been part of a shared transatlantic story, built on cross-investment, shared heritage and deeply interconnected value chains, with the widespread use of American whiskey casks for EU spirits production. Against that backdrop, this agreement should mark the beginning of the next phase of transatlantic work. EU spirits are a natural priority for further progress, and restoring zero-tariff treatment would reinforce this partnership and deliver clear benefits for producers, hospitality businesses and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic.”
Meanwhile, spiritsEUROPE calls on the United States to continue fully implementing its commitments under the Turnberry agreement, including ensuring that US tariffs resulting from new Section 301 investigations do not exceed the agreed 15% tariff ceiling on EU exports. Ensuring that both sides adhere to the terms of the agreement is essential to maintaining confidence and predictability for businesses while further discussions take place.
In addition, spiritsEUROPE urges the European Union and the United States to move swiftly towards the permanent removal of tariffs linked to the Airbus-Boeing dispute. A lasting resolution would provide long-term certainty for businesses and prevent the risk of unrelated trade disputes once again affecting sectors such as spirits.
spiritsEUROPE remains committed to engaging constructively with EU and US policymakers and stakeholders to support a stable, predictable and mutually beneficial transatlantic trade relationship, and to ensure that the next phase of discussions delivers meaningful progress for European spirits.
- ENDS -
NOTE TO EDITORS
For more information, please contact: Pauline Bastidon, Trade & Economic Affairs Director – bastidon@spirits.eu – Mobile: +32 491391922
spiritsEUROPE (www.spirits.eu) represents the interests of the spirits sector in 31 national associations as well as of the 11 leading multinational companies. Distilled spirits are as diverse as the EU’s Member States, spanning 44 product categories and including a host of geographically specific products that contribute to the culture of their regions and the European Union. As the leading voice of the European spirits sector, we seek to maintain and advance the freedom to produce and market spirits in a responsible way.
Background Information:
Turnberry agreement & exemption for spirits
On 27 July 2025, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald J. Trump announced a bilateral agreement on tariffs and trade. As part of its implementation, President Trump signed an Executive Order on 31 July 2025 (accessible here), establishing a 15% tariff ceiling on imports of EU products into the US.
On 21 August 2025, both sides issued a Joint Statement to provide further details on what was agreed through negotiations (the Joint Statement can be accessed here). It contains a list of product-specific exemptions from tariffs. Unfortunately, spirits are not part of this list, meaning that EU spirits remain subject to a 10% import tariff in the US (under Section 122), expected to increase to 15% following the conclusion of the US Section 301 investigations (during the course of July 2026).
On 30 June 2026, the two legislative proposals implementing EU tariff commitments under the Turnberry agreement were published in the EU Official Journal (see here). These two legislative instruments entered into force on 1 July 2026.
The Joint Statement agreed last August specified that: “The United States and the European Union agree to consider other sectors and products that are important for their economies and value chains for inclusion in the list of products for which only the MFN tariffs would apply”. spiritsEUROPE calls for EU-US talks to restart with a view to expanding the list of EU products benefitting from a tariff exemption. The MFN (Most Favoured Nation) rate for spirits in the US is 0%.
Large civil aircraft dispute
EU and US spirits have been caught in the large civil aircraft disputes in both directions, with . Tariffs on both EU and US spirits (set at 25%) and other products on both sides of the Atlantic were suspended for a period of 5 years, from 11 July 2021 to 11 July 2026. You can find more information on the dispute and timelines here.
Download
