Premier Doug Ford says he is “100 percent” committed to removing Crown Royal whiskey from all Ontario-run liquor stores next month when manufacturer Diageo closes its bottling plant in the southwestern part of the province.
Ford has been critical of Diageo since the British alcoholic beverage company announced plans in late August to shutter its nearly 100-year-old bottling plant in Amherstburg in February in a bid to “increase efficiency.”
The company said bottling operations designated for the U.S. market will move south of the border and bottling for Canadian customers will be transferred to its current facility in Valleyfield, Que. The decision will impact the 170 employees who work at the facility and will also have repercussions for the local economy.
Ford first voiced his displeasure with the company during a Sept. 2 press conference when he dumped a bottle of Crown Royal whiskey out on the ground. He then vowed at a press conference the following month to pull the whiskey off LCBO shelves unless the company reconsidered its plant closure plans.
Ford has consistently repeated the threat since then, and confirmed his intent to move ahead on his pledge when questioned by reporters during a Jan. 5 press conference.
“Oh, 100 percent, I can’t wait,” he said. “As soon as they close that plant. So, you better stock up.”
Ford in October promised to pull both Crown Royal and Smirnoff Vodka off LCBO store shelves, but did not declare an intention to include other beverages in the boycott when asked about it during the Jan. 5 media briefing.
“I’m just going to focus on Crown Royal for now,” Ford said.
Ford also told reporters that “there’s quite a few interested parties” looking at taking over Diageo’s facility in Amherstburg, a small city near the mouth of the Detroit River in Essex County. He said whichever company takes over the building will be looking to hire all of the Diageo employees, although the premier said some of them have already found work at the Stellantis plant in Windsor.
Diageo owns Crown Royal, Smirnoff, and several other well-known liquor brands, including Guinness, Baileys, and Captain Morgan. The Epoch Times contacted the company for comment about the potential boycott of its products in Ontario but did not receive a response before publication.
US Boycott
Ford also ordered the LCBO last March to remove American alcohol from its store shelves in response to the ongoing trade dispute with the United States. Canada is the largest buyer of American wine and spirits and Ontario represents the largest share of that market.Ford has said American alcohol products will stay off Ontario shelves until tariffs are removed or Canada secures a trade agreement with the United States.
Ford told reporters on Jan. 5 that that boycott has resulted in increased profits for Ontario winemakers and breweries.
“With the moves that we have made in the last year, we’ve seen wine sales jump 76 percent,” Ford said. “So that’s great for the grape growers, the small wineries, the large wineries, and any other alcoholic beverage that we have.”
