Achi news desk-
The cabinet minister in charge of Alberta’s spirits industry says he will not set floor prices for alcohol on the shelves but refuses to say what other changes may be considered.
“We are not looking to get in between the retailer and the consumer in any way. We will not set floor prices,” Alberta Services Minister Dale Nally told reporters Tuesday at the legislature.
“This is about social responsibility, and Albertans spoke very loudly.
“I can’t predict what will happen down the road.”
Nally’s comments came a day after he called out four liter plastic vodka jugs with a sticker price of $49.95 being sold in Edmonton.
Nally said he considered selling vodka at that price offside. He said if there was a bill now before the house went through, it would have specific authority to set liquor prices and review the system with an eye to ensuring responsible pricing.
Nally was responding to social media photos that circulated over the weekend of jumbo vodka jugs produced by an Edmonton-area business – T-Rex Distillery – and made to be sold exclusively at Super Value Liquor stores.
Super Value said it has dropped the jugs down from $60 to best serve customers who want to buy in bulk and save money.
After Nally expressed his concerns on Monday and said he was looking at intervention, T-Rex announced, despite a mixed reaction to the jugs, that it was halting production.
On Tuesday, Sunny Bhullar, co-owner of Super Value Liquor, told The Canadian Press that the stores would end the special sale price on the jugs by the end of the day.
“We still have the stock, but we will end the promotional price in light of the minister’s position,” said Bhullar.
Under the current rules, the province’s oversight agency, Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis, or AGLC, sets the wholesale cost that retailers must pay for products.
T-Rex, however, said the agency does not provide rules or guidelines on how products should be priced on the shelves.
“Albertan craft distilleries have long suffered from a lack of responsible pricing and, in fact, there are multiple distilleries out there that sell their spirits even cheaper than T-Rex,” the company said in a statement.
The distillery also criticized AGLC for removing a rule a few years ago that required distilleries to produce at least 80 percent of their products in-house.
T-Rex said removing the rule forces them, and others, to lower prices to stay in business.
On Tuesday, Nally committed to maintaining the status quo.
“That 80/20 rule was reduced as a bureaucracy initiative to help small businesses and to stimulate investment, and I would suggest that it works. So we are not looking at changing that,” he said.
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on April 9, 2024.
