The LCBO, which is the only wholesaler of alcohol in the province and sells almost C$1 billion ($678 million) in American wine, beer, spirits and seltzers annually, will also take US products out of its catalog, he added, so other retailers and restaurants can’t restock those items.
Quebec also plans to instruct its provincially run liquor stores to remove US alcohol from shelves as of Tuesday, the province’s finance minister said in a statement later Sunday.
Those moves follow a similar pledge Saturday by British Columbia Premier David Eby, who directed the provincially owned liquor distributor to remove some alcohol brands made in Republican-led states from the shelves of retail stores and to cease further purchases.Smaller provinces Nova Scotia and Manitoba also pledged to pull American alcohol from shelves.
Chris Swonger, chief executive officer of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, called the provincial actions “aggressive retaliation” that was “disappointing and counterproductive.”
“Taking American spirits off the store shelves will needlessly reduce revenues for the provinces and hurt Canadian consumers and hospitality businesses,” he said in a statement Sunday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled plans on Saturday to respond to Trump’s tariffs with retaliatory levies on C$155 billion worth of American-made products and said provincial leaders were preparing non-tariff responses of their own.
The tariffs go into effect Tuesday, leaving a day for negotiations.
