Stricter Rules for Influencers, Merchants, and Wineries

In advertising for wine and other alcoholic beverages, producers and merchants were already required to comply with legal restrictions and regulations to protect minors, as well as laws against unfair competition (UWG) and food law. Now the German Advertising Council has developed detailed behavioral rules and social media guidelines for commercial communication for alcoholic beverages, which are now also binding.

To better protect children and adolescents from abusive alcohol consumption on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok, the Advertising Council has revised these guidelines. The new rules have been in effect since August 1, 2024. For anyone promoting wine there, presenting their wines, or discussing them in videos or podcasts, these binding requirements now apply.

What must producers and wineries consider on social media?

The behavioral rules of the Advertising Council have been binding since August 1. This was not the case before: The applicable rules only provided for "helpful recommendations" for which there was no obligation to comply. That has now changed.

The following rules now apply to winemakers, merchants, and influencers in their communication and advertising on social media:

1. Advertising for alcoholic beverages must not be directed at children and adolescents under 16 years of age. Winemakers, merchants, and influencers must also show a notice that the content of their channel is only aimed at adults if there is no age restriction on the platform.
2. All users of the channel must also be informed that advertising posts and videos must not be forwarded to minors.
3. If users and subscribers of an influencer or winery comment on the posts or upload their own videos or photos, the operators of the channel are responsible for the content of the "user-generated content" and must regularly check it for compliance with the advertising guidelines. In case of inappropriate content or a violation of the Advertising Council's code, the post must be deleted with a linked notice of the behavioral rules. Users must also be informed about this.
4. Winemakers, merchants, and influencers must also clearly and transparently inform their visitors that they are the operators of the channel and thus responsible for the content.
5. It is now explicitly stated in the guidelines that they must also be bindingly adhered to by influencers who promote alcoholic beverages on behalf of a merchant or producer. The influencers themselves must have reached the legal minimum age and at least look like "young adults".

Wineries and merchants are responsible

The new guidelines explicitly state that clients must instruct their commissioned influencers to comply with the Advertising Council's codes when advertising on their social media channels. If they violate these when posting videos or posts, the merchant or winery must demand that they delete the content. This means: Clients of influencers are now obliged to monitor their content on the topic of alcohol regularly.

All producers, wineries, merchants, and influencers, as well as wine media, must now quickly implement these rules in their channels. However, they can freely decide how to phrase and design the binding notices there. The Advertising Council has formulated a notice text that, for example, wineries and merchants can already use in their channels:

This channel promotes alcoholic beverages and is aimed at adults. Therefore, do not share the content with minors. We welcome interactions but will delete any content that violates applicable law or does not comply with the behavioral rules of the German Advertising Council.

Conclusion

The new social media guidelines now apply bindingly to all producers, merchants, and influencers. They must explicitly inform the visitors of their channels. Influencers are considered part of the communication chain for alcoholic beverages, as they produce and disseminate content that promotes wine. To ensure that the entire wine industry acts responsibly in terms of youth protection, all parties involved must adhere to the behavioral rules and guidelines of the German Advertising Council.