Wines & Vines reported December 18, 2015 that Congress passed an omnibus appropriations bill that, among other things, repealed a Country of Origin Labeling requirement for beef and pork entering the US, that had been strongly contested by Canada and Mexico. The issue was so contentious that Canada had threatened to retaliate against American suppliers of goods if the law was not repealed, which would have meant substantially increased taxes on American wines entering those countries. You can find the whole article at: http://www.winesandvines.com/template.cfm?section=news&content=162490
Starting January 2015, Massachusetts will allow limited, regulated winery-to-consumer shipments: Massachusetts’ adult residents will be able to purchase wines directly from wineries licensed by the state to ship.
The move comes after years of closed door laws. The change in Massachusett’s law brings to a close a decade-long effort to open the state to direct shipping, pulling it out of the ranks of Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Kentucky, Utah, Mississippi, Delaware, Alabama, and Oklahoma.
“The budget language is based on the model direct shipping bill being used successfully by the majority of U.S. states. It requires wineries to apply for a state-issued shipping license, to mark boxes as requiring signature at delivery, to pay taxes, and to limit the quantity of wine shipped to individuals.” — FreeTheGrapes.org
Read the full press release here.