B.C. wines lose their monopoly at markets
B.C. Wine Institute expresses disappointment with Canada’s concession to U.S. as part of new trade agreement
Opening up grocery store shelves to foreign wine will push local wines out the door, says B.C. Wine Institute president Miles Prodan.
In a side letter following a new trade deal reached Sunday by Canada, the United States and Mexico, Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland committed B.C. to eliminating regulations allowing only B.C. wine to be sold on regular grocery store shelves.
Earlier this year, the United States asked the World Trade Organization to establish a dispute settlement panel over what it said were unfair regulations for the sale of B.C. wine in B.C. grocery stores.
This restriction must now end by Nov. 1, 2019.
In a statement, Premier John Horgan acknowledged the wine policy had been controversial for some time.
“We knew this was a problem that we were going to have to fix,” said Horgan. “We will continue to work with the Canadian government to resolve it in a manner that best protects our wine industry.”
Although not a surprise, this news came as a disappointment to the B.C. Wine Institute.
“There’s a restricted amount of licences that are wine and grocery, and government has indicated there will never be much more than there already are if at all,” said Prodan. “If we have to add foreign wine into the mix, that means we’re going to have to take out a B.C. wine. There’s only so much shelf space to accommodate the access that the Americans are asking for.”
It is unknown who will decide which wines go on the shelves, he said.
There are currently 1,100 stores selling wine in B.C., including private and government liquor stores, and 29 grocery stores selling B.C. wine exclusively.
“One of the things we took away that was good was our B.C. wine industry licences that pre-date NAFTA and were grandfathered in the original NAFTA agreement continue to be recognized and grandfathered into the new agreement,” said Prodan. “The bad side is any of those licences we moved into grocery stores over the last couple of years, the Americans are now asking for access to.”
Tony Stewart, CEO of Quails’ Gate Winery in West Kelowna, said he hopes grocery stores continue to primarily sell B.C. wine, despite having to allow foreign wines into the mix.
“I think that people are really interested in local foods, not to say they don’t like trying wines from around the world . . . but it’s nice to have a good selection of British Columbia wines,” he said. “Most retailers do have a very good selection of B.C. wines, and I think they should continue to do that.”
Over the next 13 months, the B.C. Wine Institute will determine how to maintain access for small, independent winemakers while meeting the demands of the U.S. in the new trade agreement, said Prodan.
“We’ll have to see how this impacts our industry,” he said.