Good afternoon.
I'm Hillary Dawson. I'm president of the Wine Council of Ontario. On behalf of our membership, I'm very honoured to be invited to come and participate in these committee hearings today.
The Wine Council of Ontario is the champion of Ontario's high-quality, authentically local vintners quality alliance wines, and of promoting wine country as a destination. As a non-profit trade association, the WCO represents 80-plus wineries from across the designated viticulture areas of the province. Our members are grape growers, manufacturers, and leaders in tourism in their communities. We're the future of Ontario's wine industry, which is a source of new investment, jobs, and award-winning wines. Additionally, the Wine Council of Ontario promotes the unique qualities of Ontario's locally grown wines through its consumer-facing brand Wine Country Ontario.
The Wine Council of Ontario is a strong supporter of Bill C-311 and has been encouraged by the support that this bill has received from all parties in the House. Clearly, there is consensus that modernizing our commercial relationships with our customers is an idea that's time has come.
One of the reasons that my member wineries have a strong interest in the passage of this bill relates to the challenges of our marketplace. VQA wineries in Ontario currently have the following sales outlets for their wines. First is sales through the LCBO. The LCBO is the sole avenue for mass distribution of wines in Ontario. It has two lines of business: LCBO wines, which it sells in larger volumes at lower price points, and Vintages, which is the key vehicle for sales of premium-priced wines. Though the LCBO is an excellent retail partner and a big supporter of VQA wine sales, Ontario's VQA wineries are mainly challenged by the lack of opportunities to connect with the consumer at the premium price level.
On average, Vintages has been releasing less than 200 VQA wines per year through this channel. Additionally, these releases can be as few as 20 cases, but generally are in the range of about 125 cases. As a result of these realities, VQA wineries are very focused on other avenues to sell premium-priced VQA wines.
Another important channel is sales to other provinces through liquor boards. The Wine Council of Ontario and its winery members have been actively engaging interested liquor boards across Canada to grow the presence of VQA wines on shelf. Channels, like the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission, have partnered with the industry to create promotions for VQA wine, which have led to sustained listings in that market.
It should be noted that these opportunities work best when there are market conditions for both winery and retailer that drive positive results. Not all provinces are interested in developing this market in this way, but the industry has been active in engaging as many as make sense, and will continue to do so in order to ensure a strong presence of 100% Canadian wines for Canadian consumers.
A third avenue for premium VQA wines is direct sales to the trade. When given the opportunity to sell directly to the customer, Ontario's VQA wineries have made a strong success in sales to trade in this province. From our perspective, the lesson around direct delivery is that our wineries are prepared to invest and hustle in driving sales in these channels, which are extremely competitive, and that with this personal service we can grow our business even in the face of imported wines and consignment pricing.
Fourth is our export of wines. This continues to be a significant opportunity for Canadian wines, particularly icewines. Working together under the auspices of a national export strategy, VQA wineries continue to grow the profile of icewines and premium table wines abroad.
Last but not least, our sales at the cellar door. For the vast majority of wineries in Ontario, transactions at the winery itself are the primary vehicle for sales. Currently in Ontario, there are approximately 130 wineries commercially active in producing and selling VQA wines. Cellar door sales are primarily driven through the significant tourism numbers that the wine country experience attracts into our market. It is at the cellar door that our customers make an important emotional connection to both the wine country experience and to the wines. This is what customers want to be able to subscribe to and bring back home. Whether this be an on-site transaction of any volume or a desire to reorder product, the inability to service this request directly for any Canadian out-of-province customers is embarrassing for the winery and exceptionally frustrating for the consumer.
These customers are very wine involved and have an expectation that they'll be able to continue this very personal relationship with their favourite winery at any time. Being able to service this customer directly will allow wineries to have a commercial relationship with their customer that parallels the one that they can have with virtually any other store or supplier currently.
I look forward to the discussions here today. Please know that the Wine Council of Ontario supports the proposed amendments as articulated by the Canadian Vintners Association. This will ensure that the bill's intended impacts are realized, and the opportunities it affords Canadian wine customers are clear.
Direct-to-consumer sales will give Ontario's VQA wineries an opportunity to continue relationships with their most interested and discerning customers. The passage of this bill will be an important and critical first step in being able to carry on these relationships in a modern commercial environment. This will complement the ongoing efforts of Ontario's wineries to grow their shelf presence and sales at both the LCBO and other Canadian liquor boards.
Thank you.