SPRINGFIELD – The alcohol marketplace has changed and so have the laws. Effective January 1, 2025 bill SB 2625 went into effect. Alcohol-infused products such as alcoholic ice cream, whipped cream, popsicles, and other similar products are now considered alcoholic beverages regulated by the Illinois Liquor Control Act and the ILCC. This law requires product separation for retail displays of alcohol-infused products and co-branded alcoholic beverages. For small businesses that cannot meet product separation requirements, the ILCC will provide required signage clearly identifying alcohol-infused products.
Key Points
- “Alcohol-infused products” means any frozen or unfrozen, solid, or semi-solid food in a form other than liquid, including, but not limited to, ice cream, ice pops, whipped cream, gelatin-based products, and other similar products, containing more than 0.5% alcohol by volume.
- Retailers with sales floor space of 2,500 square feet or less and do not physically separate alcohol-infused products from other products that may appeal to children like soft drinks, fruit juices, bottled waters, candies, or snack foods portraying cartoons or youth-oriented images, are required to post signage clearly indicating the alcohol-infused products are alcoholic beverages and must be sold to persons over 21 years of age.
- Retailers with sales floor space over 2,500 square feet are required to keep alcohol-infused products physically separated from other products that may appeal to children.
- Unless alcohol-infused product displays have the required signage, alcohol infused products cannot by “immediately adjacent” to products that appeal to children. “Immediately adjacent” means directly touching or immediately bordering one another from above, below, or the side. “Immediately adjacent” does not include a separate aisle.
“Mistaking alcoholic products for their non-alcoholic counterparts is especially dangerous for minors and individuals with alcohol use disorders,” said Illinois Liquor Control Commission Executive Director Lisa Gardner. “This law aims to safeguard the Illinois public health by preventing product confusion while also prohibiting alcohol marketing that may appeal to children.”
Retail signage must be clearly visible on all displays of alcohol-infused products on retail sales floors. You can print a copy of the signage on the ILCC website or pick up a copy in the Chicago office Monday through Friday 8:30am – 4:30pm.
About the Illinois Liquor Control Commission
The Illinois Liquor Control Commission’s mission is to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the people of Illinois through careful control and regulation of the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcoholic liquors and through the development of strategies to reduce youth access to alcohol products and the provision of training and education on responsible beverage service.
To learn more about the ILCC and its divisions, visit www.ILCC.Illinois.gov. To submit a tip or complaint to the ILCC’s Enforcement Division, click here.