Industry Responds to COVID-19 Pandemic

We are in this together! Our COVID-19 Industry Response page is a resource for distillers, consumers, advocates and leaders within our industry.

Cocktails To-Go Fact Sheet

Read our fact sheet how cocktails to-go are boosting the struggling hospitality industry and how we encourage maintaining responsibility measures.

Cocktails To-Go: What You Need to Know Webinar Series

Check out our webinar series to learn more about steps the hospitality industry has taken to ensure responsible service & delivery, along with important guidelines for consumers to support their favorite bars &restaurants while consuming cocktails to-go responsibly at home.

Watch the series

Support Restaurants & Bars by Advocating for Cocktails To-Go

Use our Spirits United grassroots platform to reach out to government officials to support legislation that allows bars and restaurants to sell cocktails to-go and other pro-spirits industry initiatives.

Moderation & Responsibility at Home

For those adults who choose to drink, they should do so in moderation and responsibility at all times – even when spending more time at home. Here are some tips to keep in mind.

Map of Distillers Making Hand Sanitizer

Visit our map of distillers producing hand sanitizer in their communities across the U.S. to fight COVID-19. They are #DistillersUnited4ACause.

COVID-19 Economic Relief for Distillers

Congress and the Administration have taken steps to expand loan programs, grant programs, tax credits, and other forms of economic relief for businesses that have been greatly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis.

Keep Hand Sanitizer Out of Reach

Learn more about our public education campaign that raises awareness and provides a reminder that hand sanitizers containing alcohol should be kept out of reach of children.

As a distiller – how can I get economic relief?

How has DISCUS engaged with Congress and the Administration?

I’m a distiller – where do I start?

First, please fill out this form to publicly share more information about your sanitizer production and any needs.

We’ve heard from many other distillers who want to produce hand sanitizer, but who need supplies such as ethanol or hydrogen peroxide to produce the WHO Formula or who need supplies like bottles, labels, or boxes. We’ve also heard from distillers seeking help with distribution, including delivery, or who have enough sanitizer to share with a retailer to reach more people.

Our Portal aims to help make these connections:

Click here for a list of distillers who need supplies

Click here for a list of distillers who need distribution help

Visitors can search our list of distillers by their city, state, name, and what supplies or distribution help they need. Just click the “+” icon next to a distiller’s name to see more details, including a link to an individual profile with all of that distiller’s information at a glance.

Please contact covid19@distilledspirits.org should you have questions or concerns.

How can I get hand sanitizer for my community and/or in bulk?

Please visit the list of distillers who are producing sanitizer. This link will display:

distiller’s estimated weekly production,
how they’re packaging the hand sanitizer,
how to get in touch, and
if they’d like to sell or donate.

Visitors can search the list of distillers by city, state, name, and more. Just click the “+” icon next to a distiller’s name to see more details. The distiller’s information can also be viewed at a glance by clicking on their company name.

Please contact covid19@distilledspirits.org should you have questions or concerns.

Can I reach out to someone to help me with supplies?

VAPP (Visibility and Procurement Platform) provides accredited buyers with unprecedented visibility and access to the nation’s supply of vital raw materials – chemicals like Isopropanol and Ethanol that are used in the production of hand sanitizer – and critical finished goods like N95 masks and gloves. For DISCUS members that means having real time visibility into supply from trade associations such as the National Association of Chemical Distributors and the ability to procure items such as Hydrogen Peroxide and Glycerin with a couple clicks.

For the first time, accredited suppliers will have the ability to sell their materials and finished goods at fair market prices in all 50 states, reaching the organizations and geographies with the greatest need to battle COVID-19. Suppliers maintain full control over which accredited buyers they sell to and all pricing is kept confidential.

VAPP has payment and bulk freight logistics built into the platform enabling quantities of all sizes to move across the country with a few clicks. EchoSystem realize. To prevent price-gouging, all transactions and prices are logged in real time providing system-wide access to pricing anomalies.

VAPP is built on the latest, secure cloud-based technology and is available free of charge. Companies can be up and buying or selling in less than 24 hours and also have instant access to post needed items on the wanted board. Click here to learn more or to sign up. http://www.echosystem.com/vapp or reach out to austin@echosystem.com.

PCPC Hand Sanitizer Ingredient Connection

Click Here to Access the PCPC Hand Sanitizer Ingredient Connection

The coronavirus has changed how everyone around the world lives and works. It has tragically taken too many lives and caused significant economic loss. Many of us are struggling with how to adapt to this “new normal.” The beauty and personal care industry is demonstrating its extraordinary corporate citizenship in a variety of ways during this crisis.

The Connection program is intended to facilitate manufacturing and marketing of hand sanitizers in the United States by connecting buyers and sellers of hand sanitizer materials with one another. The Personal Care Products Council (PCPC) is offering this as a public service and will not charge any fees. Participants can use the Connection program to publish information about their business needs (what they are seeking or making available) and view a list of other participants whose needs closely match their own, according to material type and quantity.

For information about the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) current policies on manufacturing hand sanitizers, please visit its Hand Sanitizers | COVID-19 webpage.

If you have any questions or comments about the Connection program, please feel free to email Jon Hicks, Director, International Trade and Regulatory Affairs, PCPC at hicksj@personalcarecouncil.org.

Can you help make kegged beer into sanitizer?

Hat’s off to all of the distillers that have pivoted during COVID-19 to assist the community by making hand santizer. Recognizing this on-going need, Brew Pipeline has identified a way to integrate the beer industry in this process as well, and further contribute to the community. One of the many impacts of COVID-19 is a surplus of kegged beer, left to spoil in the hands of numerous distributors across the country. With the knowledge that beer can be distilled into alcohol, and therefore into sanitizer, Brew Pipeline is making themselves available to connect distillers with this excess beer to do just that. If this proves to be an efficient and cost effective solution for both using up beer and producing sanitizer, please contact Trip Kloser at trip@theklosergroup.com – (301)346-1125 for more information.

Guidance on distilling this unused beer for hand sanitizer can be found in the DISCUS Hand Sanitizer Guidance document.

Resources

The Changing Marketplace

Hand Sanitizer and Disinfectant Spray Production and Compliance Guidance

Charity Relief Efforts

COVID-19 Scams

Unfortunately as is the case in many crisis situations, there are those who are attempting to take advantage of consumers and companies. We have recently learned that distilleries have been receiving requests from malicious or fraudulent entities posing as hand sanitizer supply chain companies. We would like to caution you to please vet all requests and unsolicited communications thoroughly before clicking on any links or taking any other action. We have listed below some warning signs and resources to help you identify potential scams.

Familiar Companies. Phishing emails and calls might seem like they are from a company you know or trust. If you receive an email or a text that asks you to verify personal or financial information, contact the company via a phone number or website you know to be authentic.

Unfamiliar Companies. If you are not familiar with the company contacting you, check the source of the request by researching the company online. If they do not appear to have a web presence or have a misleading business purpose, do not engage.

Urgent Requests. If the request uses urgent and demanding language while requesting personal or financial information, this request may be fraudulent.

Phishing Scam Info. More information from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on how to identify, avoid, and report phishing scams can be found here.

Other Scam Info, Resources, and Reporting. The FTC has also detailed some other scams targeting businesses related to the pandemic. Please see the FTC’s COVID-19 page and the FBI’s COVID-19 page for additional information and to report any scams or fraud.

Packaging of Sanitizers

There has been increased attention on the packaging used by distillers manufacturing hand sanitizer. This is a friendly reminder that distillers should be mindful to ensure that any packaging makes it clear that the product is sanitizer and not a beverage product. For context, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Poison Control organizations have expressed concern about children or others inadvertently consuming hand sanitizer as the demand for this product increases in response to COVID-19. For more information, see the FDA’s Guidance on Safely Using Hand Sanitizer, the American Association of Poison Control Centers’ Page on Hand Sanitizer, and the DISCUS Hand Sanitizer Guidance document.

To help raise further awareness on the importance of keeping sanitizers out of reach of children, please consider adding an overt warning label on your packages and continue to share the message through your social media channels with the public awareness materials provided by DISCUS. Please let us know if you have questions and thank you for all you are doing to keep our communities safe.

Thank you!

To the distillers who are working hard to produce hand sanitizer for their communities, thank you. To the first responders, medical professionals, grocery store employees, delivery men and women, truck drivers, and warehouse employees who continue to keep America moving, thank you. We’ll be stronger when this is behind us. Until then, we are #DistillersUnited4ACause.