California Proposition 65 Warning
CALIFORNIA PROPOSITION 65 WARNING
WARNING: Drinking distilled spirits, beer, coolers, wine and other alcoholic beverages may increase cancer risk, and, during pregnancy, can cause birth defects.
For more information go to https://www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/alcohol
Why does Back Room Wines include this warning?
Back Room Wines strives to comply with all applicable laws, including Proposition 65. We have elected to provide the Proposition 65 notice in order to ensure compliance. The warning does not mean that our products will cause any harm. Moreover, a Proposition 65 warning does not mean a product is in violation of any product-safety standards or requirements. In fact, the California government has clarified that "the fact that a product bears a Proposition 65 warning does not mean by itself that the product is unsafe." The government has also explained, "You could think of Proposition 65 more as a 'right to know' law than a pure product safety law."
See https://www.p65warnings.ca.gov
Proposition 65
Proposition 65, officially known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, protects the state's drinking water sources from being contaminated with chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm, and requires businesses to inform Californians about exposures to such chemicals.
Proposition 65 requires the state to maintain and update a list of chemicals known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity. Check The State of California Prop 65 Frequently asked Questions page.
State of California Proposition 65 Warning
Under Proposition 65, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) requires every manufacturer, distributor, importer or retailer who sells an alcoholic beverage to a California consumer to provide a clear and reasonable risk warning prior to the consumer purchasing the product.
All ABC licensed retailers, including bars, restaurants, tasting rooms, entertainment venues and hotels must have warning signage posted in their premises in a conspicuous manner where the signs will be seen by the consuming public.
Why Not Just Add a Warning to the Wine Label?
Unlike most manufacturers who may include the Proposition 65 warning directly on the label, alcoholic beverage manufacturers are precluded from putting the Proposition 65 warning on labels because all alcoholic beverage labels must be approved by the U.S. Department of Treasury's Alcohol & Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and must contain the federal government warning which is not the same as, nor compliant with, the California Proposition 65 warning.