Recent measures to ease interprovincial trade barriers for alcohol represent a step toward a freer and more dynamic market. This encouraging progress represents only a small fraction of the potential. If Canada wants to build a truly modern and efficient alcohol distribution system, further reforms are needed—reforms that go beyond interprovincial trade and address the structural inefficiencies at the heart of the system.
Two axes :
– Centralizing all alcohol distribution in Canada under a single import and wholesale system.
– Streamlining importation, Canada could eliminate unnecessary duplication, guarantee all licensees equal access to products at the same wholesale prices, and preserve provincial revenues through a fair and transparent tax model.
Canada has the opportunity to build a modern and efficient alcohol distribution system that fosters innovation, competition, and accessibility. Adopting a unified wholesale system could create a fairer and more competitive sector, benefiting businesses, consumers, and the government. The benefits for the hospitality sector, in particular, would be significant, radically transforming its health and offering significant potential for job growth. Using proven models from international markets, Canada can develop a modernized system that addresses inefficiencies while maintaining necessary regulations.
However, the Alba’s Wines teams already value trade agreements between Canada and the European Union.
Our winegrowers make easy-drinking wines with fruity aromas and multiple identities : similarities with American wines…