ManitobaManitoba disposed of nearly $30,000 worth of liquor after it took American-made products off shelves in response to the U.S. trade war.Minister says losses ‘the cost of doing business in the Trump era’Arturo Chang · CBC News · Posted: Oct 20, 2025 9:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours agoManitoba Liquor & Lotteries (MBLL) saw $29,000 in losses related to inventory and disposal service costs related to the removal of American products from Liquor Mart shelves, according to estimates sent in response to a Radio-Canada request filed under freedom of information laws. (Gary Solilak/CBC)Manitoba disposed of nearly $30,000 worth of liquor after it took American-made products off shelves in response to U.S. tariffs.Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries (MBLL) saw $29,000 in losses related to inventory and disposal service costs related to the removal of American products from Liquor Mart, according to estimates sent in response to a Radio-Canada request filed under freedom of information laws.The costs were as of Aug. 21. A spokesperson for the Crown corporation said most of that figure comes from the value of the inventory that was discarded, with about $2,400 specifically related to the cost of the product’s actual disposal.The province removed American-made alcohol from its shelves in early March, after the U.S. slapped levies on Canadian goods. The ban was expected to affect about 6 per cent of products at Liquor Mart shelves.Following its enactment, MBLL told CBC News many of the products had a long shelf life, and that the products would be held in storage for the time being rather than be returned or destroyed.The products pulled off shelves initially cost $3.4 million, MBLL said in its response to Radio-Canada’s request. The figure does not include the money the Crown corporation would stand to gain if it sold the product.MBLL said there were no extra storage expenses from the ban, since they’re entirely in its distribution centre in Winnipeg.A recent report by a U.S. trade group says exports of American spirits plunged by 85 per cent in the second quarter of 2025, after provinces removed products in retaliation to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.Alberta and Saskatchewan resumed purchases of U.S. alcohol in June, but bans remain in place in most of the country. Quebec’s liquor board said this summer it was contemplating dumping about $300,000 worth of booze that was set to expire, but the province’s finance minister said it would be donated instead.Glen Simard, the minister responsible for Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries, stood by the ban in a statement.“As a government, we are standing up and taking $80 million out of the American economy by taking their liquor off the shelves,” he said. “There are plenty of great Manitoban breweries and distilleries to support instead.”Simard said the $29,000 figure is related to liquor purchased before the ban took effect. A spokesperson for the minister said Monday it was wines and cream liquors that had expired and could not be resold.”This is the cost of doing business in the Trump era,” Simard said.Ian Lee, an associate professor at the University of Carleton’s Sprott School of Business, said that $80-million figure is insignificant to a U.S. economy worth trillions. He called the provincial bans “political showmanship” that will not have any impact on trade relations. “It sounds like a lot to you and me and ordinary people … but in the grand scheme of trade, it’s not even a rounding error,” Lee said. “It’s the equivalent of finding a penny on the sidewalk.”With files from Radio-Canada’s Thibault Jourdan
Manitoba disposed of nearly $30K of U.S. liquor amid tariff war
