Sour grapes? BC wine industry up in arms over ‘value added fee’ in Alberta

B.C. wineries are feeling the pinch roughly three months after Alberta introduced new fees on wine, leading to a drop in sales.

This despite a trade deal between both provinces that allows Albertans to buy directly from wine producers in B.C..

In April, Alberta spiked its flat fee on wine while also introducing a “value added charge” for any bottle worth more than $11.25 – a move Wine Growers of BC CEO Jeff Guignard isn’t happy about.

“No other country that has wine producing regions does it this way. It is a cash grab on our industry and we’ve had conversations with the Alberta government and it’s disappointing we haven’t been able to get them to understand our perspective on this.”

Guignard believes its counter productive, especially in a time where Canada is trying to make trade easier between provinces.

“BC wineries feel like they are being punished for something. and this flies in the face over all the discussions we are having in the country right now to ensure Canadians can have equal access to Canadian wine regardless of where they live.”

Simply put, many including Guignard see the fee increases as a lose-lose for both BC wineries and Alberta consumers.

“It makes no sense to us that we pay a BC producer here and pay all of our taxes and as soon as we send it to Alberta it goes directly to a consumer and the Alberta government is not involved and doesn’t touch the case but they expect all these additional mark-ups and taxes as if being brought in from a foreign country.”

“If a customer comes to BC from Alberta and maybe they join a wine club and send back a case of wine – that customer ends up paying an extra 50 or 60 dollars of that case to the Alberta government over something they were not involved in.”

Here’s a quick breakdown of the new markup:

• 5 per cent on wines priced greater than $15 but under $20 per litre.
• 10 per cent rate on wines priced greater than $20 but less than $24.99 per litre.
• 15 per cent rate on wines priced greater than $25 per litre.

In addition, the Alberta government’s flat fee on wine is $4.11 per litre.