BeerGrocery

For the first time since it was proposed 30-years ago, beer will be available in select grocery stores starting today.

Ontarians can expect to see a new product on the shelves of some grocery stores across the province – beer.

Starting Tuesday, consumers will be able to buy a six-pack of beer along with their groceries at some Ontario supermarkets.

Premier Kathleen Wynne will make it official on Tuesday morning, when when she pays a visit to the Loblaws on Leslie Street near Eastern Avenue to buy a six-pack.

The rollout follows a deal with the Beer Store earlier this year, which will eventually see 450 grocery stores like Loblaws, Metro, Sobeys and Wal-Mart stock beer by 2017. The government aims to have up to 60 locations selling beer within the next two weeks.

Ontario has previously announced there would be 25 in the Greater Toronto Area, 16 in western Ontario, 13 in the eastern parts of the province and six in the north, split between large and small grocers.

The Beer Store will keep the exclusive right to sell 24-packs and most 12-packs in the province, while grocery stores will only carry six-packs.

It’s a change that has been 30 years in the making, with former premier David Peterson first proposing the sale of beer in grocery stores in 1985.

However, the Toronto Star reports government-approved wine sales have been delayed because the province has yet to work out a deal with wine sellers the Wine Rack and the Wine Shop that already operate in the stores.

(Story credit: Patricia D’Cunha/The Canadian Press)
(Photo credit: 680News.com)