Beer, wine to be sold in grocery stores: report
Posted March 13, 2015 6:14 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Ontarians could soon be able to buy their favourite craft beers and imported wines at the same time as their bread and milk.
The Liberal government is reportedly planning to allow the sale of beer and wine in supermarkets.
According to a report in the Toronto Star, Queen’s Park plans on “liberalizing sales” in hundreds of large grocery stores across Ontario.
The government, through the LCBO, has been controlling the sale of beer and wine for 90 years, since the end of prohibition.
And the Beer Store, a privately-owned retail chain, has been the only outlet permitted to sell beer in the province outside of small brewery shops.
However, that kind of control and quasi-monopoly is reportedly coming to an end in the upcoming provincial budget.
The Star reports the government is going to let large grocery stores sell craft and major beer brands.
Ontario, meanwhile, would only say it’s waiting for final recommendations from the Premier’s Advisory Council on Government Assets.
“We’ve been open about our concerns around the issue of fairness surrounding the Beer Store,” Greg Crone, spokesman for Finance Minister Charles Sousa, told CityNews in an email.
“We believe there is an opportunity to improve customer convenience and ensure there is a wide range of brands available to Ontarians.”
Also, around 200 large grocery stores could also be licensed to carry Ontario and imported wines in their stores for the first time in Ontario’s history.
This will be different than the wine kiosks which have been operating in a separate section of the store.
According to the report, beer and wine will be on the shelves and paid for along with groceries.
Hard liquor sales will still be limited to the LCBO.
Alcohol sales amount to about $5 billion a year and generate about $1.7 billion a year, plus taxes, for the province.
It’s still not clear when the new policy would take effect.
Net income of provincial and territorial liquor authorities
Sales of beer, wine and spirits by province
680News political affairs specialist John Stall spoke with Toronto Star reporter Martin Regg Cohn about his story. Listen to the interview below:
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