Latest news with #TheBeerStore
Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Few Ontario grocery stores accepting booze empties, some weigh returning licences
Published May 30, 2025 • 5 minute read Empty beer and wine bottles. Very few Ontario grocery stores that are required to accept empty alcohol containers are doing so, leaving the future of the deposit return program in question as The Beer Store closes locations across the province. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. 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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 Don't have an account? Create Account About 70 grocery stores — ones that are more than five kilometres away from a Beer Store — have been required to take empties since last fall but only four are complying, says The Beer Store, which operates the deposit return system. On Jan. 1, 2026, all grocery stores selling beer and wine _ more than 1,000 are licensed, according to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario — will have to accept bottle returns as part of Premier Doug Ford's move to speed up the availability of alcohol. The Ministry of Finance says 13 of the grocery stores are complying and the rest of them with current obligations are 'expected to join over the coming months.' But Jan. 1 is also when The Beer Store is allowed under Ford's alcohol agreement to close an unlimited number of stores, and with so few grocery stores already participating and others threatening to hand back their licences rather than participate in the deposit return program as currently structured, the program that saw 1.6 billion containers returned last year could be in jeopardy. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Karen Wirsig, a senior program manager at Environmental Defence, said the program allows for beer bottles to be reused, ensures the effective recycling of most alcohol packaging and keeps millions of tonnes of material out of landfills. 'As the Beer Stores keep closing, that will kill the Ontario deposit return program,' she said. 'If you don't make returns convenient for people, they won't do it.' John Nock, president of the union representing The Beer Store employees, said there should be some enforcement to ensure the grocery stores get deposit return systems up and running so consumers can get their 10 or 20 cents per container. 'If they're allowed to sell alcohol … they should take returns,' he said. 'Why are (we), the public, paying a deposit to the government that we can never get back? Or we've got to drive a half an hour (to the nearest Beer Store) to get our $2 or $3 back.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Grocery stores have for months voiced their concerns with the program, from sanitation issues and space constraints to a sheer cost effectiveness calculation. Earlier this month associations representing both small and large grocers wrote a joint letter to the premier warning they will stop selling alcohol if the program isn't improved. 'Unless urgent changes are made to build fairer economics and to move away from a mandatory return-to-retail recycling system, our grocery members have advised that their stores will start the process of reviewing their future participation, potentially exiting the category all together,' wrote the Retail Council of Canada and the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Adding insult to injury, they say, is a move by the government in its budget to increase a wholesale alcohol discount from 10 to 15 per cent for bars, restaurants and convenience stores _ who do not have to accept empties — but not grocery stores, who do. 'It's inexplicable,' said Gary Sands, senior vice-president of public policy and advocacy with the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. 'If anything, what they should have been doing is saying, 'In light of the fact that we've dumped all the recycling on you guys, we're going to increase your allowance and we'll leave the others as it is.' Instead, it's the reverse.' It puts grocery stores at a competitive disadvantage, Sands said. '(Ford) promised us that when he rolled out the new system, there would be no winners and losers,' he said. 'He's broken that promise.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The big grocery chains, through the Retail Council of Canada, are echoing those concerns. Loblaws is testing a return-to-retail system at one location and is finding it's 'ludicrously expensive,' said Sebastian Prins, director of government relations for the retail council. 'It's tightening already tight margins,' he said. 'Our folks just want to be able to kind of compete on a level playing field.' The AGCO has started sending grocers some 'compliance letters,' Prins said, but the language is fairly soft for the time being. There are many steps the government could take to help enable grocers to offer return systems, Prins said, such as looking at removing the deposit from beer cans and leaving those to the blue box system. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Even something as simple as the government saying, 'We are going to convene major grocers and The Beer Store in a room to talk about is there a cheaper mouse trap that can be built here' — even that would be seen as forward progress,' he said. 'They've kind of got all their levers pushed to zero.' Ford's previous plan was to get beer, wine and ready-to-drink cocktails in convenience stores and all grocery stores by 2026, but in May of 2024 he announced that would instead happen that year. An 'early implementation agreement' with The Beer Store involves the province paying the company up to $225 million to help it keep stores open and workers employed. The province's financial accountability officer said there will also be a $215-million cost as a result of lower tax revenues as grocery, big box and convenience stores are not subject to beer, wine and spirit taxes. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. As well, the FAO said there will be $172 million in lower net income to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. While there will be a $1.1 billion increase in wholesale LCBO revenue, there will also be an approximately $812 million decline in LCBO retail revenue, a $192 million cost to give wholesale discounts to new retailers, $150 million in service rebates to brewers, $105 million in higher operating expenses, and $22 million in higher recycling fees. Under the agreement, The Beer Store has to keep at least 300 stores open up to the end of this year, but starting in 2026 there is no minimum number. Ozzie Ahmed, vice-president of retail for The Beer Store, said in a statement that the stewardship of alcohol containers is an important part of retailer responsibility. 'Annually The Beer Store processes about 1.6 billion alcohol containers, more than we sell in our own network of stores,' Ahmed wrote. 'This diverts waste from landfills, recycling facilities and ensures consumers have an easy and convenient way to get their deposit back.' Crime Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls Toronto Raptors Toronto Maple Leafs
CBC
3 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Some Ontario grocery stores question selling booze over empties deposit program
Social Sharing Very few Ontario grocery stores that are required to accept empty alcohol containers are doing so, leaving the future of the deposit return program in question as The Beer Store closes locations across the province. Only about 70 grocery stores — ones that are more than five kilometres away from a Beer Store — have been required to take empties since last fall but only four are complying, says The Beer Store, which operates the deposit return system. On Jan. 1, 2026, all grocery stores selling beer and wine — more than 1,000 are licensed, according to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario — will have to accept bottle returns as part of Premier Doug Ford's move to speed up the availability of alcohol. The Ministry of Finance says 13 of the grocery stores are complying and the rest of them with current obligations are "expected to join over the coming months." But Jan. 1 is also when The Beer Store is allowed under Ford's alcohol agreement to close an unlimited number of stores, and with so few grocery stores already participating and others threatening to hand back their licences rather than participate in the deposit return program as currently structured, the program that saw 1.6 billion containers returned last year could be in jeopardy. Karen Wirsig, a senior program manager at Environmental Defence, a Canadian environmental advocacy group, said the program allows for beer bottles to be reused, ensures the effective recycling of most alcohol packaging and keeps millions of tonnes of material out of landfills. "As The Beer Stores keep closing, that will kill the Ontario deposit return program," she said. "If you don't make returns convenient for people, they won't do it." WATCH | Ford's push to expand alcohol sales early to cost Ontario $612M, budget watchdog says: Ontario's booze expansion rollout could cost taxpayers $1.4B, FAO says 4 months ago Duration 3:49 John Nock, president of the union representing The Beer Store employees, said there should be some enforcement to ensure the grocery stores get deposit return systems up and running so consumers can get their 10 or 20 cents per container. "If they're allowed to sell alcohol ... they should take returns," he said. "Why are [we], the public, paying a deposit to the government that we can never get back? Or we've got to drive a half an hour [to the nearest Beer Store] to get our $2 or $3 back." Grocery store associations sent letter to Ford Grocery stores have for months voiced their concerns with the program, from sanitation issues and space constraints to a sheer cost effectiveness calculation. Earlier this month associations representing both small and large grocers wrote a joint letter to the premier warning they will stop selling alcohol if the program isn't improved. "Unless urgent changes are made to build fairer economics and to move away from a mandatory return-to-retail recycling system, our grocery members have advised that their stores will start the process of reviewing their future participation, potentially exiting the category all together," wrote the Retail Council of Canada and the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. Adding insult to injury, they say, is a move by the government in its budget to increase a wholesale alcohol discount from 10 to 15 per cent for bars, restaurants and convenience stores — who do not have to accept empties — but not grocery stores, who do. "It's inexplicable," said Gary Sands, senior vice-president of public policy and advocacy with the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. "If anything, what they should have been doing is saying, 'In light of the fact that we've dumped all the recycling on you guys, we're going to increase your allowance and we'll leave the others as it is.' Instead, it's the reverse." It puts grocery stores at a competitive disadvantage, Sands said. "[Ford] promised us that when he rolled out the new system, there would be no winners and losers," he said. "He's broken that promise." The big grocery chains, through the Retail Council of Canada, are echoing those concerns. Loblaws is testing a return-to-retail system at one location and is finding it's "ludicrously expensive," said Sebastian Prins, director of government relations for the retail council. "It's tightening already tight margins," he said. "Our folks just want to be able to kind of compete on a level playing field." The AGCO has started sending grocers some "compliance letters," Prins said, but the language is fairly soft for the time being. WATCH | Ontario to spend hundreds of millions to boost alcohol sector in 2025 budget: Ford's budget promises to bolster Ontario-made alcohol, lower prices 15 days ago Duration 2:14 There are many steps the government could take to help enable grocers to offer return systems, Prins said, such as looking at removing the deposit from beer cans and leaving those to the blue box system. "Even something as simple as the government saying, 'We are going to convene major grocers and The Beer Store in a room to talk about is there a cheaper mouse trap that can be built here' — even that would be seen as forward progress," he said. "They've kind of got all their levers pushed to zero." The Beer Store processes 1.6B containers annually Ford's previous plan was to get beer, wine and ready-to-drink cocktails in convenience stores and all grocery stores by 2026, but in May of 2024 he announced that would instead happen that year. An "early implementation agreement" with The Beer Store involves the province paying the company up to $225 million to help it keep stores open and workers employed. The province's financial accountability officer said there will also be a $215-million cost as a result of lower tax revenues as grocery, big box and convenience stores are not subject to beer, wine and spirit taxes. As well, the FAO said there will be $172 million in lower net income to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. While there will be a $1.1 billion increase in wholesale LCBO revenue, there will also be an approximately $812 million decline in LCBO retail revenue, a $192 million cost to give wholesale discounts to new retailers, $150 million in service rebates to brewers, $105 million in higher operating expenses, and $22 million in higher recycling fees. Under the agreement, The Beer Store has to keep at least 300 stores open up to the end of this year, but starting in 2026 there is no minimum number. Ozzie Ahmed, vice-president of retail for The Beer Store, said in a statement that the stewardship of alcohol containers is an important part of retailer responsibility. "Annually The Beer Store processes about 1.6 billion alcohol containers, more than we sell in our own network of stores," Ahmed wrote.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Few Ontario grocery stores accepting booze empties, some weigh returning licences
Beer cans and wine bottles are stacked as props in front a display of ice cream, at a press availability attended by Ontario Premier Doug Ford at a convenience store in Toronto, Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young TORONTO — Very few Ontario grocery stores that are required to accept empty alcohol containers are doing so, leaving the future of the deposit return program in question as The Beer Store closes locations across the province. Only about 70 grocery stores — ones that are more than five kilometres away from a Beer Store — have been required to take empties since last fall but only four are complying, says The Beer Store, which operates the deposit return system. On Jan. 1, 2026, all grocery stores selling beer and wine — more than 1,000 are licensed, according to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario — will have to accept bottle returns as part of Premier Doug Ford's move to speed up the availability of alcohol. The Ministry of Finance says 13 of the grocery stores are complying and the rest of them with current obligations are 'expected to join over the coming months.' But Jan. 1 is also when The Beer Store is allowed under Ford's alcohol agreement to close an unlimited number of stores, and with so few grocery stores already participating and others threatening to hand back their licences rather than participate in the deposit return program as currently structured, the program that saw 1.6 billion containers returned last year could be in jeopardy. Karen Wirsig, a senior program manager at Environmental Defence, said the program allows for beer bottles to be reused, ensures the effective recycling of most alcohol packaging and keeps millions of tonnes of material out of landfills. 'As the Beer Stores keep closing, that will kill the Ontario deposit return program,' she said. 'If you don't make returns convenient for people, they won't do it.' John Nock, president of the union representing The Beer Store employees, said there should be some enforcement to ensure the grocery stores get deposit return systems up and running so consumers can get their 10 or 20 cents per container. 'If they're allowed to sell alcohol ... they should take returns,' he said. 'Why are (we), the public, paying a deposit to the government that we can never get back? Or we've got to drive a half an hour (to the nearest Beer Store) to get our $2 or $3 back.' Grocery stores have for months voiced their concerns with the program, from sanitation issues and space constraints to a sheer cost effectiveness calculation. Earlier this month associations representing both small and large grocers wrote a joint letter to the premier warning they will stop selling alcohol if the program isn't improved. 'Unless urgent changes are made to build fairer economics and to move away from a mandatory return-to-retail recycling system, our grocery members have advised that their stores will start the process of reviewing their future participation, potentially exiting the category all together,' wrote the Retail Council of Canada and the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. Adding insult to injury, they say, is a move by the government in its budget to increase a wholesale alcohol discount from 10 to 15 per cent for bars, restaurants and convenience stores — who do not have to accept empties — but not grocery stores, who do. 'It's inexplicable,' said Gary Sands, senior vice-president of public policy and advocacy with the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. 'If anything, what they should have been doing is saying, 'In light of the fact that we've dumped all the recycling on you guys, we're going to increase your allowance and we'll leave the others as it is.' Instead, it's the reverse.' It puts grocery stores at a competitive disadvantage, Sands said. '(Ford) promised us that when he rolled out the new system, there would be no winners and losers,' he said. 'He's broken that promise.' The big grocery chains, through the Retail Council of Canada, are echoing those concerns. Loblaws is testing a return-to-retail system at one location and is finding it's 'ludicrously expensive,' said Sebastian Prins, director of government relations for the retail council. 'It's tightening already tight margins,' he said. 'Our folks just want to be able to kind of compete on a level playing field.' The AGCO has started sending grocers some 'compliance letters,' Prins said, but the language is fairly soft for the time being. There are many steps the government could take to help enable grocers to offer return systems, Prins said, such as looking at removing the deposit from beer cans and leaving those to the blue box system. 'Even something as simple as the government saying, 'We are going to convene major grocers and The Beer Store in a room to talk about is there a cheaper mouse trap that can be built here' — even that would be seen as forward progress,' he said. 'They've kind of got all their levers pushed to zero.' Ford's previous plan was to get beer, wine and ready-to-drink cocktails in convenience stores and all grocery stores by 2026, but in May of 2024 he announced that would instead happen that year. An 'early implementation agreement' with The Beer Store involves the province paying the company up to $225 million to help it keep stores open and workers employed. The province's financial accountability officer said there will also be a $215-million cost as a result of lower tax revenues as grocery, big box and convenience stores are not subject to beer, wine and spirit taxes. As well, the FAO said there will be $172 million in lower net income to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. While there will be a $1.1 billion increase in wholesale LCBO revenue, there will also be an approximately $812 million decline in LCBO retail revenue, a $192 million cost to give wholesale discounts to new retailers, $150 million in service rebates to brewers, $105 million in higher operating expenses, and $22 million in higher recycling fees. Under the agreement, The Beer Store has to keep at least 300 stores open up to the end of this year, but starting in 2026 there is no minimum number. Ozzie Ahmed, vice-president of retail for The Beer Store, said in a statement that the stewardship of alcohol containers is an important part of retailer responsibility. 'Annually The Beer Store processes about 1.6 billion alcohol containers, more than we sell in our own network of stores,' Ahmed wrote. 'This diverts waste from landfills, recycling facilities and ensures consumers have an easy and convenient way to get their deposit back.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025. Allison Jones, The Canadian Press
CTV News
16-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
What's open on Victoria Day in Waterloo Region?
The Victoria Day long weekend is upon us and most stores, including shopping malls, will be closed as people across the province mark the holiday. Here is a list of local destinations and services, as well as their hours, on May 19: Grocery and alcohol sales Most grocery stores will be closed. Call ahead if unsure. Most The Beer Store locations will be open from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. LCBO locations will be closed Governance All city hall locations in Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo and Guelph will be closed All Region of Waterloo administrative offices will be closed Libraries All libraries in Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo and Guelph will be closed Museums Guelph Civic Museum (Guelph) - Closed McCrae House (Guelph) – Closed Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum (Kitchener) – Open 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Schneider Haus National Historic Site (Kitchener) – Open 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. McDougall Cottage Historic Site (Cambridge) – Open 12 p.m. until 4 p.m. Sports facilities and community centres Ted Wake Centre (Cambridge) – Closed David Durward Centre (Cambridge) – Closed William E. Pautler (Cambridge) – Closed Cambridge Centre for the Arts (Cambridge) – Closed Allan Reuter Centre (Cambridge) – Closed W.G. Johnson Centre (Cambridge) – Open 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. John Dolson Centre (Cambridge) – Open 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Duncan McIntosh (Cambridge) – Closed Dickson Centre (Cambridge) – Closed Galt Arena (Cambridge) – Closed Karl Homuth (Cambridge) – Closed Hespeler Memorial Arena (Cambridge) – Closed Centennial Arena (Guelph) – Closed Exhibition Arena (Guelph) – Closed Guelph Sports Dome (Guelph) – Closed Sleeman Centre office and arena (Guelph) – Closed All community centres in Kitchener – Closed Forest Heights Pool (Kitchener) – Open 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Doon Valley and Rockway golf courses (Kitchener) – Open Don McLaren Arena (Kitchener) – Closed Grand River Arena (Kitchener) – Closed Lions Arena (Kitchener) – Closed Sportsworld Arena (Kitchener) – Closed Activa Sportsplex Arena (Kitchener) – Open 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. Lyle S. Hallman walking track (Kitchener) – Open 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. Albert McCormick Community Centre (Waterloo) – Closed Bechtel Park (Waterloo) – Closed Moses Springer Community Centre (Waterloo) – Closed RIM Park Manulife Sportsplex & Healthy Living Centre (Waterloo) – Closed Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex and Swimplex (Waterloo) – Closed Transit Grand River Transit will be operating on a holiday service schedule. MobilityPLUS service will operate, but subscription trips will be automatically cancelled. Customers can rebook those trips by calling 519-774-2241 Guelph Transit will be running on an on-demand model, except for Route 99 Mainline, which runs every 30 minutes Waste management Waste collection managed by the Region of Waterloo will continue as scheduled, with regular curbside collection on Monday Transfer stations for residential drop-off at the Cambridge and Waterloo Waste Management sites will be closed
Global News
15-05-2025
- Business
- Global News
Ontario keeps paying Beer Store agreement as alcohol revenue falls
The Ford government has paid the privately-owned Beer Store almost two-thirds of the $225 million it promised the company to reduce the layoffs from alcohol liberalization, new figures released along with the budget show. The latest update to the public cost of alcohol liberalization comes as the Ontario budget shows revenues at the LCBO are down, along with taxes on the sale of beer, wine and spirits. Last year, Ontario broke its longstanding exclusivity agreement with The Beer Store as part of its bid to allow convenience, grocery and big box stores to sell beer and wine. The government earmarked $225 million for the chain, including measures to reduce store closures. To date, The Beer Store has been paid $130.5 million of that fee, according to the government. It expects to pay the remaining $94.5 million by the end of the year. Story continues below advertisement Under the $225 million agreement with the government, at least 300 Beer Store locations must remain open until the end of 2025. After that, there will be no restrictions on shutdowns. The Beer Store has already announced several closures across the province — ranging from Oakville to Toronto and London. 2:42 Beer and wine finally arrive in Ontario convenience stores They did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Global News asking if they planned to close more, or all, of their stores after the agreement expires. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said the funds his government had put aside for the company were designed to ease the transition — but didn't guarantee there wouldn't be long-term job losses. 'They have to make business decisions, strategic decisions,' he said. Story continues below advertisement 'Now, you can get alcohol in grocery stores, your corner store, the convenience store, the gas station, all kinds of different outlets, the LCBO, you have more choices. So, we provided some support so they could make a transition as consumer behaviour developed and to protect their employees as they went through this transition.' The latest figures for how much The Beer Store has been paid by taxpayers come in a budget document with substantial changes to alcohol sales rules — and a drop in revenue. The government's 2025 Ontario budget shows that the revenue the province makes from taxing the sale of beer, wine and spirits has dropped substantially. In 2022, the government made $600 million in taxes on alcohol, dropping to $593 million in 2023 and $562 million in 2024. For the 2025 year, it will fall again to $388 million. Officials with the Ministry of Finance attributed some of that drop to changing consumer behaviour as people drink less. 2:07 Why some convenience stores are opting out of Ontario's historic alcohol rollout Bethlenfalvy said, even if consumption is down, small businesses that are now able to sell alcohol are seeing the benefits. Story continues below advertisement 'I think our modernization of the alcohol system has been amazing,' he said. 'Consumption patterns are changing, people are drinking less and the U.S. factor but … I think it's going extremely well, we're hearing from convenience stores this has been a game changer. Their revenues are up; they're hiring more people.' At the LCBO, which was bracing to lose customers to other retailers, it's the same story. Revenue from the LCBO in 2022 was around $2.5 billion; it is expected to drop to just under $1.9 billion. Changes introduced in the latest budget could compound that number. In an attempt to boost alcohol sales by lowering the price to buy, the government is planning to direct the LCBO to reduce the markup it is allowed to add to cider, ready-to-drink beverages and products from small breweries in Ontario. The changes, which will kick in in August, would not reduce what the LCBO pays to alcohol producers but would limit the profit the Crown corporation can make. That, in theory, would reduce the cost to buy booze and also lower the amount of money the province raises through alcohol. The various changes to tax credits, markups and fees are expected to cost the government $410 million over the next three years. Separately, Ontario will spend $175 million over five years as part of a new program designed to boost the number of Ontario grapes in blended wine. The province said the program will eventually double the percentage of Ontario grapes, 'leading to the purchase of thousands of additional tonnes of Ontario grapes from farmers.' Story continues below advertisement Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the government was 'consumed' with alcohol sales — instead of focusing on tariff supports. — with a file from The Canadian Press
