On 19th April 1994, the Union of Czech Spirit’s Producers of Spirits was founded by the most important Czech spirits producers with the aim of promoting and defending common interests and to represent the members to external entities inland and abroad.
Over the next few years, there were changes in the membership mainly caused by the transformation or termination of the activities of some entities.
As of 1st January 2011, the Union was strengthened significantly, as the three most important importers of spirits, Brown-Forman, Remy Cointreau, and Global Spirits also joined the Union, which resulted it a change of name to the Union of Producers and Importers of Spirits of the Czech Republic. By 2020, more companies became members of the Union – DIAGEO, the world’s largest producer of spirits, and Coca Cola HBC Czechia and Slovakia, which distributes a number of foreign brands of spirits. The members of the Union supply the Czech market with approximately 80 % of the total volume of spirits.
The Union’s action in the area of responsible marketing and responsible consumption of alcoholic beverages was strengthened significantly with the entry of foreign companies.
The main activities of the Union can be divided into two areas. The first is the active participation in the legislative field in close cooperation with the Food Chamber, negotiations with state administration authorities and cooperation with media in the interests of both its members and consumer public. The second and no less important area is the projection of the social responsibility of the members of the Union into specific projects – Pij s rozumem (Drink responsibly) or Pobavme se o alkoholu (Let’s talk about alcohol) – based on the Code of Ethics for Responsible Alcohol Consumption.