B.C. alcohol consumption hits all-time high, with Interior and Vancouver Island leading
CTV
British Columbians drank more alcohol during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic than at any other time in the past 20 years of available data, according to the latest analysis from the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research.
B.C. residents over the age of 15 drank the equivalent of 547 cans of beer (five per cent alcohol) or 104 bottles of wine (12 per cent) per capita between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021, according to the institute at the University of Victoria.
In pure alcohol terms, the total amounts to 9.32 litres of ethanol per capita, the highest level of alcohol consumption recorded since the institute started tracking the data in 2001.
"This tells us the higher levels of consumption seen in the first few months of COVID were not the result of stockpiling, but of an overall increase in drinking sustained over the year," said CISUR director Dr. Tim Naimi in a statement Wednesday.
The institute says that although liquor consumption at bars and restaurants fell significantly – 60 per cent and 46 per cent, respectively – the drop was more than made up for by the increase in private liquor store sales, which accounted for 55 per cent of all alcohol sold in the province.
"It has never been easier to buy alcohol in B.C., and we know increased availability of alcohol leads to people drinking more," said Naimi.
The institute says the B.C. government's relaxation of alcohol regulations during the pandemic, including expanded liquor store hours, restaurant off-sales and home delivery services, "have certainly played a role in these increases."
The B.C. Interior saw the highest rates of pandemic alcohol consumption at 13.96 litres of pure alcohol per capita, followed by the Vancouver Island region with 11.54 litres.
The Fraser Health region saw the lowest consumption rates with an average of 7.09 litres per capita, while the Vancouver Coastal Health region averaged 7.75 litres and the Northern Health region averaged 10.78 litres.
