BC Pulled US Liquor From Shelves—But It's Still for Sale (Just Not to You)

On Monday, the British Columbia government ordered the immediate removal of all US-made alcoholic beverages from BC Liquor stores, expanding a policy that initially targeted only products from Republican-led states. The move, announced by Premier David Eby, was framed as a response to "escalating threats" from the US, including trade tariffs and comments made by President Donald Trump regarding Canadian industries and territorial sovereignty.

Following the announcement, Coastal Front raised a key question: What exactly is BC going to do with all the American alcohol it has already paid for?

The province has now provided an answer: it will still sell the liquor—but not to the average British Columbian looking for a bottle of bourbon.

Chris Donnelly, Senior Public Affairs Officer for the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General, told Coastal Front that removed US liquor remains available through the BC Liquor Distribution Branch’s wholesale channels, meaning bars, restaurants, and private liquor stores can still purchase the products.

Additionally, US-made liquor stored in third-party warehouses across BC is also permitted to be sold until existing inventory is gone.

In the end, the high-profile removal of US liquor from government shelves was a performance. While British Columbians were told to support local alternatives, the province ensured that American alcohol would continue flowing to businesses behind the scenes. The only real difference: who gets to buy it.

Selling the liquor was inevitable—it had already been purchased. Letting it sit in warehouses or go to waste was never a realistic option. But the public spectacle of deshelving it, only to quietly move it through wholesale channels, shows the move for what it was: a virtue signal rather than a meaningful trade action.