As The Beer Store locations continue to close across Ontario, grocers are being tasked with collecting empty alcohol bottles and cans — a role many didn’t sign up for.
“The January 1 date may be rolling along for the government, but it’s not rolling along for grocers,” said Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers senior vice-president Gary Sands.
The province will require independent grocers to collect empties as part of the Ontario Deposit Return Program (ODRP).
According to Sands, that decision is being met with protest from many who would rather turn in their license than take on the extra task.
Main concerns with collecting empty bottles and cans include the risk to food safety, finding space for the containers and the staffing challenges that come with having to clean and organize empties for pick up.
“We have a number of independents who have just not applied for licenses because of this requirement … And we have independents who have applied for licenses then found out about the recycling then said thanks but no thanks,” Sands said.
Among the independent grocers that won’t be involved in the ODRP is David La Mantia.
His family has been running La Mantia’s Country Market Fresh for decades, and has been selling liquor at the store when the first phase of grocery stores were able to sell beer and wine.
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“It’s not a big profit item to begin with, we have it here just as a draw — it brings traffic into our store,” he said. “But the cost of not only accepting the empties but cleaning and sorting make it a lose proposition for us.”
For La Mantia, his priority is consumer health and safety — but taking empties does not put that at the forefront.
“Our specialty is fresh produce, fresh meat, fresh baked goods,” La Mantia said. “I think as a consumer you don’t want to think that you’re putting your package of fresh strawberries on our checkout belt after somebody has just placed a bunch of empty beer bottles or beer cans on that same checkout belt.”
At a press conference on Monday, Premier Doug Ford was asked about an alternative solution to grocers collecting empties and said he is working on a solution.
“You know, it’s ironic. All these retailors, they all want the booze in the stores, they all want to sell the booze, but they don’t want to take bottles back,” Ford said. “There’s opportunities too to open new businesses to collect the bottles as well.”
La Mantia has had a contract in place for years regarding selling liquor in his store — which never mentioned needing to collect empties.
Global News viewed the contract and can confirm that there is no reference to that task as part of the deal.
“We signed a contract in 2019 that has a ten-year term and it was signed by the chairman of the LCBO, it’s on a form that they prepared,” said La Mantia. “It did not require us to take empties, so for the government to say we knew what we were getting into is completely a falsehood.”
He and other independent grocers would like to see that deal — which was signed in good faith — honoured.
“In my way of thinking, there needs to be an industry-wide solution instead of placing all the burden on independent grocers and chain grocery stores,” La Mantia said.
He wants to see the burden spread across the whole retail alcohol distribution channel — which include LCBO retail stores as well as independent and chain convenience stores.
An email response from the Ministry of Finance reads that its regulations “include the flexibility for businesses to negotiate and produce alternate arrangements to deliver this program, consistent with the competitive marketplace we’re opening up. Options include being able to join together for the process or using alternative locations for empty pick up and drop off.”
If the requirement to collect empties remains come January 1, Sands confirms that many grocers will be giving up their license
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