Bacardi rum labelled as bottled in Jacksonville, Fla., is back for sale at the LCBO after being removed from shelves in March, along with other American alcohol, as part of the Ford government’s decision to stop selling U.S.-made products at the retailer.
Bacardi’s 1.5-litre bottles are labelled “A blend of Puerto Rican rum,” yet they’re stamped with “BACARDI BOTTLING CORP, JACKSONVILLE, FL, USA.” While Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, it is not a state.
When asked about this, the LCBO provided a statement to 680 NewsRadio saying, “The LCBO aligns with the federal government’s tariff definition of U.S. products. Select Bacardi products are produced in Puerto Rico. Any product produced in the U.S. remains unavailable for sale at the LCBO.”
The tariff definition laid out by the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) appears to exempt products from U.S. territories. On retaliatory tariffs, the CBSA states, “The surtax does not apply to goods eligible to be marked as originating from Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa or the U.S. Virgin Islands.”
The LCBO did not immediately respond to questions from 680 NewsRadio about why the Bacardi products in question are not considered as coming from the U.S despite being imported from the Bacardi bottling facility in Florida.
The opposition at Queen’s Park noticed and commented on the change. Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles says it’s “consistent with this government’s lack of consistency in their approach to the tariff threat.”
Though she noted her support for the government’s decision to remove American alcohol from the LCBO, Stiles added, “We have to send a message and there are a few ways we can do that and I do think that it ruffled feathers in the United States.”
The LCBO is the sole purchaser for all American alcohol across the province and imports $965 million worth of booze annually, with more than 3,600 American products from 36 states on its shelves. The LCBO is also the province’s main alcohol distributor.
