The Canadian Craft Brewers Association and the Coalition of Canadian Independent Craft Brewers welcomes the recommendation of the House of Commons Committee on Finance (FINA)’s recommendation in the 2024 pre-budget report.

This recommendation recognizes the urgency to support Canada’s smaller breweries, which represent 20,990 industry jobs, according to a recent Economic Impact Study conducted by MNP.

Specifically, the committee’s recommendation # 330 is to Modernize the Excise Act to lessen the tax burden placed on Canada’s locally owned and operated craft breweries, allowing the industry to continue to grow, add jobs and contribute to local economies.

“A progressive federal excise rate schedule that allows all breweries to grow to 500,000 HL without encountering fiscal cliffs along the way will lessen the current tax burden placed on over 1,200 Canadian locally owned and operated independent craft breweries,” says CCBA’s Executive Director Christine Comeau. “The proposal is also trade compliant and all breweries with access to the Canadian market should support these recommendations.”

Brad Goddard, Chair of the Coalition of Canadian Independent Craft Brewers continues, “Craft breweries contribute ~$1.7b in total GDP, yet according to recent data from Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada, in 2022 63% of the 897 breweries in Canada with less than $5 million in revenue were not profitable. We have to modernize the outdated excise tax schedule to address this challenge, or we will continue to lose breweries across the country.”

About the CCBA

The CCBA-AMBC exists to promote and protect the interests of over 1,200 small and independent Canadian craft breweries, brewpubs, and their supplier partners. We are constituted as a federation of provincial craft brewers associations. Our brewery members are from every province and territory in Canada.

About the Coalition of Canadian Independent Craft Brewers

The Coalition members represent larger scale craft breweries in Canada that have made a substantial economic commitment in their breweries to promote job creation, investment, and economic growth. We’re handcrafted in a high-volume world, and we’re proud of it. Our industry leaders have always believed that to raise one glass is to raise the entire sector.

SOURCE: Canadian Craft Brewers Association
PHOTO CREDIT: Canadian Craft Brewers Association