Craft wineries support Premier Ford removing U.S. products from LCBO shelves

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Wave goodbye to California wine.

The advocacy group for craft wineries across the province said Tuesday it is backing Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s immediate response to tariffs imposed on Canadian goods.

“We stand with the Premier in his move to remove U.S. brands from the LCBO,” Michelle Wasylyshen, president and CEO of Ontario Craft Wineries, said in an emailed statement.

“Our hope is that everyone continues to unite behind the need to support Ontario’s local, homegrown products, such as those from Ontario VQA wineries.”

Wasylyshen said the province’s craft wineries are ready to help fill the empty shelves.

“We look forward to working with all retail channels to get more Ontario VQA wines quickly onto store shelves to fill any gaps. We have immediate inventory and can jump into action quickly.”

The non-profit group, which represents around 120 craft wineries throughout the province, says it is urging consumers to look for the VQA label on the bottle to ensure the wine is 100% Ontario-grown and made.

“We are the model of a made-in-Ontario story,” Wasylyshen said.

She also pointed to the disproportion of trade when it comes to wine imports and exports between the two countries.

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“Regarding U.S. tariffs, there is an imbalance of trade when it comes to wine,” Wasylyshen said. “Canada does not export any significant amount of wine into the United States, but we are the largest export market for U.S. wine by far.”

At LCBO stores, American wines account for about 20% of market share and VQA wines is around 6%, according to Wine Growers Ontario.

The wine industry generated approximately $5.5 billion to the province’s economy and employed 22,300 people in 2019.