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Why are Ontario beer stores closing, and where will all the empties go?
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The latest round of closures includes three in the Toronto area and several towns with only one Beer Store. There have been 77 closures announced this year An Ontario Beer Store location, showing the conveyor for returning empties. Photo by The Beer Store On Monday, The Beer Store announced it will be closing a dozen of its Ontario locations in two months' time, on Oct. 19. It's not the first such announcement from the retailer. Here's what to know. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE ARTICLES Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors The 12 locations include two in Toronto and one in nearby North York, but also smaller communities. Towns that will see a Beer Store close include Bridgenorth, Eganville, Forest, Grand Bend, Harrow, Little Current, Markdale, Noëlville and Sauble Beach. Get a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again While Torontonians can easily pivot to another location, small-town residents may face more inconvenience. Residents of Little Current on Manitoulin Island will have to travel 40 kilometres to Espanola for the nearest Beer Store after the closure, while those in Noelville, near French River, will have to go almost 50 kilometres to Sturgeon Falls. (Both towns are served by an LCBO outlet.) No. Since April, The Beer Store has made eight separate announcements of store closures, with a total of 77 locations being shut down. In each case, the closure date is two months from the announcement date. Each announcement mentions the 'difficult decision' to close some locations, along with a similar statement from Ozzie Ahmed, retail vice-president. The latest says: 'Where we sell beer and collect empties in Ontario is changing. The Beer Store is modernizing to meet the changing marketplace and unfortunately this means making the hard decision to close retail locations. We know this is difficult news for customers and employees. As The Beer Store modernizes, our locations will continue to provide friendly customer service and a deposit return system that gets consumers their money back. 'The Beer Store recognizes the contributions our employees make to the business and in the communities where we operate. All efforts will be made to support employees through this process in alignment with commitments and agreements.' Alcohol sales in Ontario have been changing in recent years, especially under Doug Ford's Conservative government. In late 2023, the Premier announced that sales of beer, wine, cider and ready-to-drink cocktails would be allowed in convenience stores and all grocery stores by 2026. Then last summer he announced that the phased expansion would begin even earlier, in August of 2024. A 2015 agreement between the former Liberal government of Ontario and The Beer Store had given the retailer exclusive rights to sell 12- and 24-packs of beer until the end of this year. As part of the earlier expansion of alcohol sales, the province agreed to give The Beer Store up to $225 million. In a press release at the time, the government said the money was 'to make the necessary investments over the next 19 months to support a stable transition to a more open and convenient marketplace, including funding to protect jobs across the province and to keep The Beer Store locations open for the continued availability of recycling and bottle return.' This advertisement has not loaded yet. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The agreement also included keeping at least 386 stores open until July of 2025, and at least 300 until Dec. 31, 2025. The press release added: ' The Beer Store will continue to run the effective and efficient province-wide recycling program for alcoholic beverage containers until at least 2031.' According to The Beer Store's 2024 operational report, The Beer Store that year had 407 locations, down from 424 two years earlier. In the same time period, the LCBO added eight locations for a total of 688. That's the million-dollar (or, given the price of empties, 10-to-20- cent) question. Ontario's online alcohol sales finder shows that the town of Little Current has three locations other than The Beer Store to purchase beer — the LCBO, the Valu-Mart and the Manitoulin Brewing Company. However, only The Beer Store accepts the return of empties. The province's agreement with The Beer Store requires grocery stores that sell alcohol to begin accepting the return of empties no later than Jan. 1, 2026. National Post has reached out to The Beer Store and the LCBO for additional comment. With files from The Canadian Press Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
