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Selling soft drinks and other beverages in Brazil

In Brazil, beverages fall under Law 8.918/1994 and Decree 12.709/2025, enforced by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA). A drink under 0.5% alcohol is non-alcoholic; juices, nectars and soft drinks have legal definitions. Labels are in Portuguese, nutrition labelling follows ANVISA's rules, and imports need MAPA authorisation.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Regulator
MAPA (Ministério da Agricultura e Pecuária); ANVISA for health aspects
Main rules
Law 8.918/1994 and Decree 12.709/2025
Non-alcoholic
Below 0.5% alcohol by volume at 20 °C
Label language
Portuguese (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 106)
Nutrition labelling
ANVISA IN 75/2020
Bottled water
ANVISA: communication to the local health authority

Before a product goes on sale

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Which legal category is the drink: juice, nectar, refresco, soft drink or another? Read more
  2. 2Do the establishment and the product need MAPA registration? Read more
  3. 3What must the label show, and in Portuguese? Read more
  4. 4Is it bottled water, which ANVISA regulates? Read more
  5. 5How does an imported drink clear MAPA? Read more
  6. 6Can each lot be traced and recalled? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Legal categories

How Decree 12.709/2025 defines beverages, and who regulates which aspect.

  • Registration, standardisation, classification, inspection and control of beverages are mandatory across Brazil (Law 8.918/1994, Article 1).
  • MAPA covers technological aspects; the health system (SUS) covers bromatological and sanitary aspects (Articles 2 and 3).
  • A non-alcoholic beverage has less than 0.5% alcohol by volume at 20 °C (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 11).
  • Juice (suco) is not fermented, concentrated or diluted (Article 23); nectar is juice or pulp diluted in water (Article 29); refresco is a diluted drink of juice, pulp or plant extract (Article 32); a soft drink (refrigerante) is carbonated with juice, pulp or extract dissolved in water (Article 35).
  • Decree 12.709/2025 replaced Decrees 6.871/2009 and 8.198/2014 and took effect on its publication on 3 November 2025; IN 140/2024 consolidates MAPA's beverage standards and is being revised for the new decree.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the recipe and the evidence for the category you claim with the product, so the name on the label can be checked against the definition. Ask about this

Registration, traceability and recall

Putting the establishment and the product on record with MAPA, and acting on a faulty lot.

  • Establishments and products are subject to registration, cadastro or accreditation with MAPA where specific legislation or a ministerial act requires it, according to risk, size and market (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 114).
  • A mark or graphic identifies the MAPA registration of the establishment or product (Article 107), from 90 days after publication.
  • The party responsible keeps records that trace each lot, for 18 months from the expiry date (Article 123).
  • Where a product is non-conforming or puts consumers at risk, the party responsible or the importer recalls the lot at its own cost (Article 124).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the MAPA registrations with each product and lot, dated, and shows when traceability records are due to be kept until. Ask about this

Labelling

What a beverage label must show, and the rules MAPA lists for it.

  • Labels are easy to see, legible and hard to remove, with correct, clear, precise and prominent information in Portuguese; therapeutic claims are not allowed (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 106).
  • Online offers must show the mandatory label information (Article 110), from 90 days after publication.
  • MAPA's labelling page lists the rules that apply to beverage labels, including the Consumer Defence Code, Decree-Law 986/1969, Law 10.674/2003 on gluten, the GMO symbol under Decree 4.680/2003 and ANVISA's IN 75/2020 on nutrition labelling.
  • Additives in beverages follow ANVISA's rules (MAPA beverages legislation page).

How we help: Compliant Always reads your label and online listing against the particulars MAPA lists, and shows what is missing. Ask about this

Bottled water

Natural mineral water and other packaged waters are foods regulated by ANVISA.

  • Ice, natural mineral water, natural water and waters with added salts are regularised by communication of the start of manufacture or import to the state or municipal health authority (IN 281/2024, Annex III).
  • Desalinated sea water is notified to ANVISA (Annex II).
  • ANVISA's food page lists beverages and bottled waters among the products it coordinates.

How we help: Compliant Always records the regularisation route for each water and keeps the filing with the product. Ask about this

Import

How an imported beverage is authorised and inspected by MAPA.

  • An imported product must meet the Brazilian identity and quality standard for the national product (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 162), and enters only with MAPA authorisation (Article 164).
  • Imported products sold in their original pack carry the mandatory information in Portuguese, on the original label or on a complementary label (Article 109).
  • The importer is registered with MAPA for the import activity through SIPEAGRO; the import licence goes through Siscomex, with certificates of origin and analysis, and an import inspection certificate is needed before sale (MAPA import page).
  • Non-conforming imports are destroyed or returned at the importer's cost (Article 167).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the certificates of origin and analysis with each shipment, and shows which are missing before the goods are presented. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
ProducerMAPA registration, the identity and quality standard, traceability and recall.Registrations, recipes and lab reports kept with each product and lot.
ImporterMAPA registration as importer, import authorisation, Portuguese labelling and recall (Articles 109 and 124).Certificates for each shipment read and dated before it leaves.
Brand ownerWhat the label and online listings say.Labels and listings read against the particulars, with the source for each.
RetailerOffering only conforming products, and showing the label information online.Questionnaires answered from the record of each product.

States and municipalities

Under the Consumer Defence Code, the federal government, the states and the Federal District make concurrent rules on production, distribution and consumption, and together with the municipalities they oversee and control production, distribution and advertising (Article 55).

Health surveillance is shared: state, Federal District and municipal health authorities license food establishments and receive the communication of start of manufacture for many foods, and INMETRO's delegated state bodies (IPEMs) inspect regulated and pre-packaged products on the market.

Questions businesses ask

Who regulates soft drinks and juices in Brazil?
The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA), under Law 8.918/1994 and Decree 12.709/2025. MAPA covers technological aspects; the health system, through ANVISA, covers sanitary aspects such as additives and nutrition labelling.
What alcohol level makes a drink non-alcoholic in Brazil?
Less than 0.5% alcohol by volume at 20 °C (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 11).
What is the difference between juice and nectar in Brazil?
Juice (suco) is not fermented, concentrated or diluted (Article 23). Nectar is juice, pulp or edible plant parts diluted in water (Article 29).
Do beverages need MAPA registration?
Establishments and products are subject to registration, cadastro or accreditation where specific legislation or a ministerial act requires it, by risk, size and market (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 114).
Which decree replaced Decree 6.871/2009 on beverages?
Decree 12.709 of 31 October 2025, which revoked Decrees 6.871/2009 and 8.198/2014 and took effect on publication, with some provisions applying 90 or 730 days later.
Do beverage labels have to be in Portuguese?
Yes. Labels give correct, clear and prominent information in Portuguese (Article 106). Imported drinks may use a complementary label (Article 109).
Do online listings for drinks have to show label information?
Yes. An online offer must show the mandatory label information (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 110), from 90 days after the decree's publication.
Who regulates bottled water in Brazil?
ANVISA. Natural mineral water, natural water and waters with added salts are regularised by communication to the local health authority (IN 281/2024, Annex III).
What does importing a beverage into Brazil involve?
MAPA registration as importer through SIPEAGRO, an import licence in Siscomex, certificates of origin and analysis, and an inspection certificate before sale. The product must meet the Brazilian identity and quality standard.
How long must beverage traceability records be kept?
For 18 months from the product's expiry date (Decree 12.709/2025, Article 123).
How does Compliant Always help with selling in Brazil?
Our team reads the rules for the markets you sell in. Compliant Always shows which apply to your product, keeps the documents behind each one ready, and watches the sources for changes. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

Name the product and the markets you sell in. We will come back to you with what applies in Brazil and what your paperwork needs to show.

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