Ford government would use LCBO ‘clout’ in future fights with companies
Global News
Premier Doug Ford backed down from his threat to remove Crown Royal from the shelves of the LCBO after the government said it reached a $23 million agreement with the company.
Fresh off a fight with international spirits maker Diageo over the future of Crown Royal, Ontario’s finance minister is suggesting the government is willing to employ the tactic again if other companies threaten to leave the province.
On Friday, Premier Doug Ford backed down from his threat to remove Crown Royal from the shelves of the LCBO after the government said it reached a $23 million agreement with the company that includes new investment in the province.
The agreement, the government said, would include a million-dollar investment in the Windsor and Amherstburg area, along with purchase agreements from manufacturers in eastern Ontario, Toronto, and Scarborough, plus $5 million on Ontario-based marketing and advertising.
While the Ford government was accused of “weaponizing” the LCBO, the finance minister suggested the Progressive Conservatives were willing to use the Crown agency’s purchasing power in a future fight.
“We’re the largest buyer of so many products. You wanna treat your customer well,” Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said. “We’re gonna continue, wherever we have clout to use that clout.”
In early 2025, the Ford government stripped the LCBO of all American-made wine and liquor as a retaliatory measure after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian exports.
The measure was recently pointed to by Trump and other officials in the administration as a sticking point in the ongoing trade talks between the two countries.
Bethlenfalvy, whose ministry oversees the LCBO, said the premier is willing to leverage the provincial liquor retailer against both public and private interests.
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