The Additive Free Alliance (AFA) is a coalition of tequila brands, retailers, consumers, and producers of other agave-based products who are dedicated to processes that do not use additives.
Since industry regulations do not require tequila producers to disclose whether or not they use additives, the AFA has its own independent, third -party process for identifying and listing additive free brands. This is for the benefit of consumers, who have a growing interest in what they consume.
The AFA is not against brands that use additives, but instead seeks transparency in labeling.
You can learn more about our process for identifying and promoting additive-free agave-based products, here.
Read our FAQ.
Our board of directors are:
-
Grover Sanschagrin, President
Founder of Tequila Matchmaker and TasteTequila.com, Grover has been overseeing the initiative of the additive free movement since 2019, when the initial planning for the designation within the app began.
-
Taylor Marvulli, Secretary
Based in Los Angeles, California, Taylor has extensive experience working with non-profit organizations, and graduated in 2020 from Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles. She is knowledgeable about the tequila industry and is a passionate believer in the mission of the additive free movement.
-
Jack M. Gruber, Treasurer
More commonly known as a world-traveling photographer, Jack splits his time between Washington DC and Cynthiana, Kentucky where he runs Boyd’s Station, a successful non-profit organization that benefits artists in the State of Kentucky by providing grants, gallery space, and other assistance.
-
Eli Diamond
President and Co-founder of The Beverage Collective, a national sales and import agency based in Canada that supports entrepreneurs in launching their brands. Eli divides his time between Vancouver and Guadalajara, and he is a passionate advocate for the additive-free movement across Canada.
-
Vinicio Estrada
Graduated from law school in Guadalajara, Vinicio specialized as a corporate attorney at law until he became President of Tequila Partida in Mexico, where he worked with the founder to lead the company’s strategic growth both domestically and internationally.
Today, in his role as CEO of the Guadalajara-based consulting firm Tequila Partners, he supports entrepreneurs and international companies in realizing their vision of crafting world-class agave spirits.
We are in the process of adding more board members, and plan to have at least 6 before the end of 2024. People with experience as importers/distributors, bartenders, and alcohol retailers are our current focus.
Additional Information:
-
The program was started in 2020 by Tequila Matchmaker, when they released a list of additive-free tequila brands and products within their mobile app and website.
Today, the company is an independent venture with a board of directors under the name "Additive Free Alliance, Inc.", and we are in the process of getting our designation as a not-for-profit 501c(3) corporation.
-
Read and carefully follow the process on this website. Details available, here.
-
How Retailers and Consumers Can Join
Educate those around you about the use of additives in tequila, and encourage people to try the additive-free products on our list.
