Many bars and restaurants in B.C. are jumping aboard the “buy Canadian” train, amid the fallout of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff brinksmanship.
On Monday, Trump put a 30-day halt on threatened 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, following a last-minute border agreement with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
But the reprieve does not appear to have blunted a consumer backlash on the northern side of the border, with many Canadians saying they’ll continue to shun U.S. products.
British Columbia’s hospitality industry is hopeful the buy local sentiment will hold out.
On Davie Street in Vancouver alone, at least four bars are phasing out or have pulled U.S. products altogether.
Locally owned and operated companies say they’re ready to step in and fill the gap.
“We’re a local B.C. craft brewery, we’ve been promoting local for the last 30 years,” Don Gordon, president of Parallel 49 Brewing told Global News.
“It’s our bedrock to promote being local, to promote being Canadian.”
For the time being, the B.C. government has called off its retaliation against alcohol produced in U.S. red states.
But local producers say the current moment is an opportunity to boost an industry that is still reeling from the pandemic, with both breweries and wineries facing significant challenges.
B.C.’s craft breweries currently account for about 35 per cent of the British Columbia’s beer sales, but advocates say there is value in growing that market share, given all profits stay in the province.
“The U.S. brands that we’re familiar with, for the most part, are made in production facilities in Canada,” explained B.C. Craft Brewers’ Guild executive director Ken Beattie.
“But the profit goes back to their head offices, many located in the U.S. or in other countries.”
Beattie said rising costs and tough economic conditions coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic have seen 14 B.C. breweries close in the last year, representing about 100 workers.
The entire industry is calling on the province to modernize its tax policy to keep small businesses competitive, particularly amid the threat of a trade war with the U.S. that would see aluminum and hop prices spike.
“Some big beer brands, foreign-owned beer brands, have had disproportionate advantages from a taxation level,” Gordon said.
Beattie added that the provincial government’s markup structure, which determines the final price of products on B.C. shelves, hasn’t been reviewed in a decade.
In the meantime, they’re hoping consumers stick with the buy local ethos.
“All of that money stays in the province, those are B.C. owned and operated small businesses,” Beattie said.