> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://bevnews.net/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# How Trump's 50% Tariff on Canadian Wine Can 'Make Canada (Not America) Great'
- URL: https://bevnews.net/how-trumps-50-tariff-on-canadian-wine-can-make-canada-not-america-great/
- Published: 2026-08-26T22:00:23.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-26T22:00:22.000Z
- Author: Joel Whitaker
- Tags: tariffs

"We cannot control decisions made in Washington," says **Jeff Guignard,** president/CEO of **Wine Growers B.C**., says in an opinion piece in the Vancouver Sun. "We can only control what we do here at home."

President Trump's 50% tariff on Canadian wine "effectively put a wall around" the U.S. wine market, Guignard says. "If access to our largest international trading partner is becoming less predictable, then Canada needs to become much more deliberate about building its domestic economy and making it easier for Canadian businesses to sell to Canadians.I

Guignard notes that the U.S. is not Canada's largest market for Canadian wine. Canada is. Canada's wine industry, including suppliers, already contributes $10.1 billion to Canada's national GDP and sustains about 93,000 equivalent jobs annually.

There is also substantial room to grow, he notes. "Canadian-made or blended wine accounted for just 28.8% of domestic wine sales in 2023-24\. Deloitte estimates that if Canadian wine reached a 51% domestic market share over time, the Canadian wine industry and its broader ecosystem could contribute an additional $3.6 billion to (Canadian) GDP annually."

Where would that additional $3.6 billion come from? A good hunk of it from the U.S. wine industry. That's partially a natural result of U.S. products being off Canadian retail shelves for so long. It's also a result of changes to Canadian law, including removing interprovincial trade barriers. "A Canadian should be able to order Canadian wine from another province without unnecessary fees, markups or administrative hurdles," he says.

Guignard also says "provincial liquor systems should be part of our economic-development strategy." In British Columbia, the Liquor Distribution Branch should not only "continue generating responsible and sustainable revenue for government. But it should also have a clear responsibility to support the growth and competitiveness of B.C. producers.

"That means better access to markets, stronger merchandising and promotion of local products, clearer identification of B.C. wine, measurable objectives, and senior accountability for growing the domestic category," he says, adding:

"This is not about keeping American wine off our shelves forever. It is not about restricting consumer choice. And it is certainly not about asking Canadians to consume more alcohol. It is about market share.

"The world’s leading wine regions do not become successful by accident. They make deliberate choices about market development, tourism, agriculture, infrastructure and domestic competitiveness. Canada should do the same."