The Globe and Mail: With wine flowing between B.C. and Alberta, makers look to free trade across Canada

The notion that alcohol sales and production should be restricted goes back to prohibition, said Jared Carlberg, professor of agricultural economics at the University of Manitoba. But alcohol receives special attention today because the liquor boards – the exclusive importers and distributors of alcohol – collect hefty taxes.

Provinces are also interested in protecting their homegrown industries. In this way, the LCBO shelters the Niagara Peninsula, Canada’s largest wine-producing region, said Mr. Carlberg.

But this restriction still doesn’t make sense to Mr. Sawler. The B.C. industry is small in comparison to Ontario’s Niagara region, which produces 80 per cent of Canada’s grapes and wine. Direct-to-consumer sales from B.C.’s niche industry are also “pretty small potatoes” compared with international imports. The LCBO is among the largest purchasers of alcohol in the world.

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