The wine agents of Ontario affirm that they are the food stores in the province “unjust” still selling California wines
The wine agents of the Hontarian wine are accusing the commission of control of the omnar liqueurs of “unjust policies” after California wines were extracted from the LCBO shelves almost a month ago due to the commercial dispute in progress with the United States, while the grocent stores and retail giants such as Costco and Loblaws are still authorized to sell the products.
The agents claim to be also frustrated by the lack of communication of the LCBO on the existing inventory and the shipments still in transit from the orders made before the ban.
On March 4, the premier of Ontario Doug Ford announced That the LCBO would support 3,600 US manufacturing alcohol products from its shelves in response to US rates, instead urging consumers to support Canadian brands. Other provinces have also followed the example as part of a wider national response to US rates imposed on Canadian assets.
While the LCBO claims to have stopped selling American wines to grocery and grocery stores “, the decision to sell through the existing inventory is discreetly,” he said in a declaration via and -mail.
The LCBO calls “agents” people or companies who are officially approved to work with it as part of its shipping program. These agents order alcohol from specific suppliers (such as foreign cellars or distilleries) through LCBO. They pay to keep the products in the LCBO warehouses and help organize sales, usually selling to bars and restaurants.
Since the ban was established, the agents are not able to access any US product from the LCBO.
“But Costco still has hundreds of cases of California wine on their shelves because (unlike me) they are authorized to thicken their wines,” said Mark McFadyen, director of ABCON International Wine Merchants Inc, a Californian wine importer based in Toronto, in an e-mail to CBC News.
Costco did not respond to the request for CBC News of information on their agreement with the LCBO. But the LCBO said: “Authorized dealers are responsible for storing all the products purchased”.
Concerns with access and inventory of the warehouse
McFadyen sells wines directly to restaurants and through the vintage section of Lcbo. He says he had a “big liberation” of a California Merlot in the Vintages section of the LCBO, which means a special time offer of time limited by California which is usually not available on regular shelves.
Now, California wines cannot sell to restaurants or even recover them from the warehouse.
The LCBO manages the storage and deposit of alcoholic products it sells, until it is distributed to LCBO stores or authorized retailers in Ontario. Agents normally pay for storage. The agents have been informed that they will no longer have to cover storage costs for US products in the LCBO warehouses starting from March 4th due to the ban. However, agents claim that storage is just one of the many current concerns.
“We don’t know how the storage taxes will be managed by going on. For example, if my wine was in deposit for 20 days before the ban, will the count will continue from 21 April? Or will it be restored?” Laura Rapuano, director of Atens Imports, said another American wine importer based in Toronto. About 60 % of its revenues come from Californian wines.
During the June-October 2024 quarter, LCBO sold $ 2.24 billion in wine, which represented about 28 % of its sales in that quarter. American wines represented 20 % of the Province’s wine market share.
In addition to the storage problems, Rapuano is also worried about the inventory limits.
Ontario is pulling 3,600 US products from the LCBO shelves in response to Trump rates, with Prime Minister Doug Ford encouraged people to buy Canadian brands.
Agents are limited as many as escort can have at hand and in transit. Although the LCBO has said that “the inventory limits are not influenced by the amount of US products in storage”, Rapuano is concerned that if new titles from other countries arrive – something you are working on – risks overcoming the limit and not being able to order more products if and when the ban is finished.
Impact on restaurants
The effect of the LCBO decision was felt by restaurants in Ontario. Many owners have told agents who will not put California wines back on their menus, even if in the end the ban on US alcohol.
Many restaurants are favorable to the ban, according to Tony Chick, president and CEO of the Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association.
“Overall, the Restaurants of Ontario have supported the government’s decision to remove alcohol products for US drinks from the LCBO lists,” said Eka.
It will soon be easier for the Canadians to buy alcohol from other parts of the country, thanks to an agreement between the provinces and the federal government which is part of a series of changes to encourage internal trade in the face of US rates.
He added that some restaurants could still offer California wines, while they have stocks, but many are instead highlighting the Canadian wines from Ontario and British Columbia.
Some restaurants are aimed at alternatives from regions such as Australia, New Zealand and France.
However, Rapuano says that the import of a new wine is not a night process. It implies the search for a supplier, the sampling of the wines, the completion of the waste, the reception of a purchase order and the shipment. “It takes from six to eight months. I can’t simply change my business model in a month,” he said.
In the meantime, Rapuano says that he has not yet received a response from the LCBO about the E -mail he sent on his concerns. “I also sent an EE -mail to Premier Doug Ford, stressing that food stores can still sell the orange juice of Florida, but I can’t sell wine in California,” he said.
