Billions at stake as Doug Ford government prepares to change booze retailing in Ontario

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Ontario Premier Doug Ford holds a case of beer during a photo opportunity at a brewery in Etobicoke, Ont. on Monday, Aug. 27, 2018.

For Ford's Progressive Conservatives, the chief goal is meeting a yet-to-be-fulfilled 2018 campaign promise to allow convenience stores to sell beer and wine. But multiple sources in various parts of the alcohol and retail industry say much more than that is on the table.During the 2018 election campaign, PC leader Doug Ford promised to allow Ontario convenience stores to sell beer and wine.

Will retailers such as grocery and convenience stores be required to devote a certain amount of shelf space to Ontario-made beer and wine, or will they have total control over the inventory they stock? Will spirits be part of the retail reform, including the sale of ready-to-drink products such as vodka coolers or hard seltzers in grocery and convenience stores?At its most fundamental level, much of the negotiations boils down to who gets the opportunity to make money off the various points of the alcohol supply chain, and how much.The LCBO turned a profit of nearly $2.5 billion in the 2022-23 fiscal year, off $7.4 billion in gross revenue. , the LCBO turned a profit of nearly $2.5 billion.

Big brewery companies and small craft brewers want the Ontario government to reduce the province's beer taxes. All sources expect the government to give notice by the end of December that it intends to terminate the contract that sets out the rules for beer sales in the province, known as the Wine Rack has 164 locations. It is part of Arterra Wines Canada, the company that owns such wineries as Jackson-Triggs, Inniskillin and Sandbanks.

"I think the biggest concern is, what is 'big grocery' going to get at the table?" said another wine industry source. "The industry just wants to make sure there are programs and supports in place if they're going to compete in an open market."Under the current rules, supermarkets must ensure that at least 20 per cent of beer and cider on display and 10 per cent of wine comes from small producers.

Under Ontario's current rules, at least 10 per cent of the wine on display in supermarkets must be produced by small wineries. If the new retail landscape allows the supermarket chains free rein over their inventory, Ontario wineries are worried they'll get pushed off the store shelves by imports. "This should be a political no-brainer to be on our side," said the source. "We've got to hope the premier sees it that way, that we are the little guys and he has the opportunity to help a domestic industry."

 

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