Rice in beer production faces a Court of Appeal challenge as petitioners seek to stop brewers using rice and sugar as primary ingredients.
The use of rice in beer production faces renewed legal scrutiny after the Court of Appeal scheduled a writ petition for objections on October 2.
The petition seeks an order preventing manufacturers from using rice and sugar as the main ingredients in beer produced in Sri Lanka.
Court of Appeal Judges R. Gurusinghe and A. Prem Shankar considered the application on July 30.
President’s Counsel K. Kanagishwaran, Sumathi Dharmawerdana and Ali Sabri appeared for the respondent liquor manufacturers.
They requested additional time to file objections connected to the case.
The court granted that request and directed the parties to return on October 2.
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A group of licensed liquor dealers filed the petition. They named the Commissioner General of Excise, excise officials, the Sri Lanka Standards Institution, the Attorney General and the Inspector General of Police as respondents.
The petitioners argue that Section 2 of the Excise Ordinance defines beer as fermented liquor made from malt.
However, they claim several manufacturers currently use rice and sugar as the main raw materials in beer production.
According to the petitioners, this practice conflicts with the legal definition contained in the Excise Ordinance. The Excise Department states that the Ordinance governs the manufacturing, transport, possession and sale of liquor in Sri Lanka.
The petitioners also raised concerns about the economic impact of using subsidised rice for commercial alcohol production.
They argue that the Government spends public funds supporting rice cultivation. Diverting that rice towards beer manufacturing could therefore affect national food policy and Sri Lanka’s efforts to achieve rice self-sufficiency.
The petition further claims that the Sri Lanka Standards Institution has not updated its quality standards to reflect current liquor-production practices.
The applicants want the court to prevent the Commissioner General of Excise and other respondents from approving sugar and rice in beer production as primary ingredients.
The allegations remain subject to judicial consideration. The respondents will have an opportunity to formally answer them when the case returns to court on October 2.
