HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, March 25, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Restaurants Canada welcomes today’s budget announcement from the Nova Scotia government, which included a commitment to allow licensed hospitality businesses to purchase all types of beverage alcohol at discounted wholesale prices.
Once in effect, this liquor policy change will extend the province’s existing 10 per cent wholesale discount on wine and spirits to also include bottled and canned beer, ready-to-drink liquor products and cider.
“This will fulfill a long-standing recommendation from Restaurants Canada and go a long way to help Nova Scotia’s hard hit foodservice sector transition from survival to revival,” said Luc Erjavec, Restaurants Canada Vice President, Atlantic Canada. “I want to thank Premier Iain Rankin for listening to our industry and taking such quick action to follow through on his leadership campaign promises to support our sector. We are incredibly grateful to see this critically needed liquor policy change, along with the recently announced property tax relief program for small businesses, hardly a month since this new premier took the reins of government.”
Policy change fulfills key ask from Raise the Bar report
Every two years since 2015, Restaurants Canada has published a Raise the Bar report to take stock of liquor policies impacting foodservice and hospitality businesses across the country. Previous reports called on Nova Scotia to extend its existing 10 per cent wholesale discount for licensed establishments to all types of beverage alcohol products.
Restaurants Canada has been working closely with Nova Scotia policymakers to bring about this critical liquor policy change among other reforms.
Learn more about all the ways that Restaurants Canada is advocating for better conditions for Canada’s bars and restaurants at: info.restaurantscanada.org/raise-the-bar
About Restaurants Canada
Restaurants Canada is a national, not-for-profit association advancing the potential of Canada’s diverse and dynamic foodservice industry through member programs, research, advocacy, resources and events. Before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Nova Scotia’s foodservice sector was a $2.1 billion industry, directly employing nearly 39,000 people, providing the province’s number one source of first jobs and serving tens of thousands of customers every day. Nova Scotia’s foodservice industry has since lost thousands of jobs and is on track to lose as much as $780 million in sales between 2020 and 2021 due to the impacts of COVID-19.