Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he will pull Crown Royal off the shelves of the province’s liquor stores should Diageo, the global company that produces the iconic Canadian whisky, go through with its plan to shutter a nearly 100-year old bottling plant in Amherstburg, Ont.
In a spirited speech Saturday, Ford told a union rally that he would fight like never before for the roughly 200 employees at the southwestern Ontario facility who are set to lose their jobs.
“A message to all the bigwigs at Diageo: I swear to God, those bottles of Crown Royal are coming off the LCBO shelves,” Ford told a cheering crowd in Brampton, Ont.
“When the last person walks out through that door, we’re going to make sure LCBO takes off their brands because we need to stick together,” he said.
Ford’s comments over the weekend were his most definitive yet on whether he would direct the LCBO, one of the largest purchasers of alcohol in the world, to stop selling Crown Royal in light of Diageo’s announcement in late August.
Doug Ford pours Crown Royal on ground, vows to ‘hurt’ Diageo for plant closure
In early September, Ford dumped a bottle of the amber liquor in a televised press conference, calling Diageo “dumb as a bag of hammers” for its decision to shut down the plant early next year.
“You hurt my people, I’m gonna hurt you,” Ford said. “You’re gonna feel the pain in February when these people don’t have a paycheque.”
But Ford did not say at the time whether he would pull Crown Royal from LCBO shelves — something the union representing workers at the plant has been pushing for.
Diageo, which produces a broad range of alcohol brands — including Guinness, Smirnoff and Captain Morgan — has said it’s closing the facility “to increase the efficiency and resiliency” of its supply chain.
The U.K.-based company has claimed it wants to shift “some bottling volume to be closer to its many U.S. Crown Royal consumers,” despite the Amherstburg plant’s close proximity to the border.
“Crown Royal will continue to be mashed, distilled, and aged in Canada, just as it has been since 1939,” the company said in a press release.
The head of the union representing workers at the plant said in an interview Monday that he wants to see Ford halt sales of all Diageo products at the LCBO “immediately,” not after the facility closes in February.
“I think it’s important that the impact happens quickly and very costly,” said John D’Agnolo, president of Unifor Local 200. “And I think they would change their mind. We’ve seen that time and time again.”
D’Agnolo said he’d “be shocked” if Diageo wouldn’t negotiate a deal to keep the plant open if the province had already taken the company’s spirits off the shelves.
“The amount of money they would lose within a two or three month period would be unbelievable,” he said. “And it doesn’t even come close to what they pay the workers and to keep that building running.”
D’Agnolo said Unifor National President Lana Payne has also “made it clear” to Ford that Diageo won’t consider changing course until it takes a hard financial hit.
D’Agnolo said he understands that Ford is likely under pressure from other provinces, such as Manitoba and Quebec, where Diageo is maintaining its operations to hold off on hurting the company’s bottom line.
“He’s got to look at everything and I understand that,” D’Agnolo said. “But he has to look at the bigger picture, and I’m sure he is and hopefully he’ll get to that conclusion.”
Ford’s office did not answer questions about whether he would pull all Diageo products from provincial liquor stores or whether he would do so earlier than February. Hannah Jensen, a spokesperson for the premier, said only that “unless Diageo reverses their decision to close their Amherstburg plant, all options remain on the table.”
Diageo did not respond to questions about its LCBO revenue, or whether its decision is final, and if so, what it’s doing to support affected workers. Instead, a spokesperson replied with the same statements the company issued in August when it first revealed it would be closing the plant.
D’Agnolo said he’ll have an opportunity to talk about Diageo with Ford next week, when the premier meets with Unifor leaders to talk about how the auto sector is faring as U.S. tariffs continue to roil the sector.
“I’ll also have an opportunity to pull him to the side to have that discussion,” D’Agnolo said, adding that the union will keep pushing Ford to pull Diageo products.
“Because what I do see in the plant is unbelievable anxiety. And I did have the opportunity to sit with the retirees and I never seen so many tears in a meeting,” he said.
“That will drive you crazy as a leader knowing what they’ve done for this community,” he said. “The workers love Diageo. They truly do, and that town loves Diageo. And to see that happen is devastating.”
Diageo is Amherstburg’s biggest employer, and nearby Windsor, Ont., has the highest unemployment rate in Canada.
“The bigger picture is if you continue to allow companies to do this without showing them, you’re going to be in trouble if you do so,” D’Agnolo said. “It’s every industry you have to worry about. And here’s an industry that’s so profitable, that’s making billions and billions of dollars. There’s no reason for it but to make more money at the top and to take away from workers.”
