Some of the larger wineries in Prince Edward County could get a shot in the arm from a new direct-to-consumer sales agreement across multiple provinces, though smaller wineries might not see as much benefit.
Quinte News spoke to Tim Kuepfer, board chair of the Prince Edward County Wine Growers Association, about changes to how alcohol is being sold across several provinces.
He said that for many of the region’s smaller wineries, attempting to clear the administrative burden to sell in other regions wouldn’t be worth the added costs.
“Predominantly, wineries in Prince Edward County have really been focused on our regional market,” said Kuepfer. “If you think about it, we’ve got Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa in close proximity, and most of the wine sales are to those markets, and in the case of Montreal, it’s tourism coming to the county.”
Kuepfer said that some of the region’s larger wineries would be better equipped to take advantage of the situation, and sell their wines to consumers across the country.
Earlier this year, Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, signed an agreement that will allow sales of alcohol across jurisdictional lines. Quebec has yet to sign on to the agreement. While the new agreement is set to allow Ontarians to buy alcohol from other provinces, Kuepfer says he isn’t worried about extra competition.
“I think it’s going to be extra competition for sure, but only in certain channels,” added Kuepfer. “There will be more options for the consumer, and that’s typically a good thing.”
Prior to the agreement, Ontario residents could only buy liquor from other provinces if it was listed by the LCBO through their private ordering program, or by travelling to that province and bringing the product home with them.
