Jo-Anne Fahey of Darkes Cider will help with submissions from industry body Cider Australia, to push Food Standards Australia New Zealand to amend their code on what is and isn’t classed as the fruity beverage after members debated the issue at last week’s annual general meeting in Batlow, NSW.

‘‘Some things are sneaking through that are calling themselves cider and they’re technically not,’’ said Mrs Fahey. ‘‘You’ve got fruit wines that are attempting to get in on the bandwagon of the cider craze, and you have products that focus on Swedish mineral water that have less fruit content ... and some people are making concoctions that are basically water, ethanol, flavourings and sugar.’’

Mrs Fahey shares the sentiments of many boutique producers who struggle to get their products in larger venues, and hopes a change in code standards will give consumers a better understanding of what they’re drinking and can therefore make an informed choice.

The Australian Tax Office has specific rules as to what constitutes a cider – or other alcoholic beverages – for tax purposes, however, those rules do not carry over to labelling.

Cider Australia executive officer Jane Anderson said a change will absolutely benefit smaller groups like Darkes Cider, who’s products are what they say they are – 100 per cent fermented apple juice.

‘‘At the moment no-one can tell whether something on a shelf called cider is really made with apples and pears, or just soda-water mixed with a smidgen of juice and ethyl alcohol derived in a laboratory and it’s important for consumers to know that,’’ said Ms Anderson.