By Pepper Parr
December 15th, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The government is delivering on its promise to allow beer sales in grocery stores by announcing the first 58 locations across the province where Ontarians will be able to buy beer.
There won’t be one in Burlington this time around – the closest will be in Oakville and Hamilton – Longos will have the Oakville location. Their Fairview location in Burlington happens to be in a plaza that already has an LCBO and a Beer Store.
Premier Kathleen Wynne and Minister of Finance Charles Sousa announced the 13 independent grocery stores and 45 stores owned by large grocers that are now authorized to sell beer.
This is the first round of Ontario’s commitment to make it more convenient for people to buy beer. Ultimately, beer will be available at up to 450 grocery stores province wide — roughly the same number of locations The Beer Store currently operates in Ontario. Beer in grocery stores is part of the biggest shakeup to beverage alcohol retailing in the province since prohibition was ended in 1927.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, which visited all 58 locations as part of the authorization process, will now monitor them to ensure that they adhere to laws on the safe retail of alcohol. These include designated sales areas and hours of sale, limitations to package sizes and alcohol content by volume, and rigorous social responsibility training for staff.
Premier Wynne’s comment that LCBO locations would be ideal for the sale of marijuana is a testament as to just how far Ontario has come. There was a time when the then Premier of the province would not allow news photographers to take his picture if there was a glass of beer in his hand.
#firstworldproblems
I really am indifferent to this. I don’t see what all the fuss is about. If people want beer, they’ll find a way to buy beer. Alcoholics are already alcoholics. Future alcoholics are already on the path. This isn’t going to have any impact on that, just like leaving things the way they are today won’t have any impact on that. We can’t bubble wrap the world to protect every single person with a weakness. Beer ads are everywhere. Bars are everywhere. Restaurants the sell alcohol are everywhere. The selling of alcohol is a big business, and one that’s not going away anytime soon. Making legal consumer goods more convenient to the end user is all this is.
Wow, maybe we DO have a temperance society in Burlington. Alcoholism is, of course, a very real and serious problem. That said, selling beer at Longo’s does not cause alcoholism. Good grief. Beer and wine have been available in U.S. grocery stores, corner stores, and gas stations for decades but rates of alcoholism in Canada and the States are about the same. https://gamapserver.who.int/gho/interactive_charts/substance_abuse/bod_alcohol_prevalence/atlas.html
Japan, on the other hand, has a relatively low rate of alcohol use disorders yet beer and wine (and sometimes even sake, Champagne, and single-malt Scotch if you’re lucky!) are available in 7-Elevens throughout that country (as well as in many other Asian countries). It’s not a big deal because they don’t MAKE it a big deal.
It would be so nice if it were possible to buy a bottle of white wine on a hot Canadian Sunday in July after 5 p.m. Why on earth isn’t it?
Alcohol has been available in supermarkets in the U.K. for decades now and one only has to look at the huge problems over there with alcohol abuse. I see nothing wrong with keeping alcohol sales properly regulated in the beer stores and liquor stores. Can we really expect supermarket cashiers to check I.D. from everyone who buys beer and won’t that just make the lines at the checkouts even a longer wait?
The life blood of the proletariat not available in Hamilton grocery stores. Egad.
I myself am against beer sales in supermarkets. Though the majority of people can use alcohol responsibly – some people can not. Do alcoholics struggling with a terrible life destroying condition need temptation waggled in front of their noses just trying to get groceries?
Making an extra stop at the beer store has destroyed no ones life as far as I can tell.
Don’t need these locations in Burlington or Halton as far as I’m concerned.
Could the provincial government now get to real problems instead of political stunts please?