Latest news with #AGLC
Cision Canada
17-07-2025
- Business
- Cision Canada
AGLC Announces Cannabis Welcome at Alberta Concerts and Festivals
Plantlife Cannabis Poised for a Busy Summer EDMONTON, AB, July 17, 2025 /CNW/ - In another nationwide first, the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC) is expanding cannabis access at public events. Already the first and only province in Canada to permit cannabis sales at 18+ events, cannabis will soon be available at most concerts and festivals. "We see this as a natural evolution of where cannabis retail is headed," said Ian Scott, VP Operations, Plantlife Cannabis. "Festivals bring together a wide range of Albertans — and by operating in designated 18+ zones with transparency, education, and full compliance, we're showing how cannabis can responsibly exist in the same spaces as beer gardens or food trucks. We're proud to be leading this shift." What the New Policy Means "Effective immediately, cannabis store licensees may apply to AGLC for an extension of their licence to temporarily sell cannabis at events and festivals where minors are permitted. Sales shall only occur in designated areas of the event or festival where minors are prohibited." Until now, cannabis sales were restricted to adults-only (18+) events. Retailers could sell cannabis only with a temporary license extension from the AGLC, and sales could not occur within designated consumption areas. Under the updated rules: Cannabis may be sold at events where minors are present, if restricted to 18+ zones Consumption areas remain separate and 18+ only Only licensed Alberta retailers can apply for these special permits This change opens the door for a more inclusive, regulated cannabis presence at Alberta's top music and cultural festivals. Plantlife Cannabis, Alberta's fastest-growing cannabis retailer, is ready to meet the moment. With multiple major festivals on the summer calendar, Plantlife is positioned to be among the first to legally sell cannabis on-site under the new framework. "This is a huge step for the normalization of cannabis in Alberta," said Marcie Kiziak, President of Retail, Plantlife Cannabis. "We've been preparing behind the scenes, and our team is ready to operate responsibly, visibly, and in full compliance at a new kind of cultural event." Where Plantlife Is Showing Up This Summer Branded Graphic Plantlife will be present — and selling — at several major festivals under the new policy: Rockin' Thunder – Edmonton – July 11–12 Cannabis was sold on-site in an 18+ zone; minors permitted elsewhere on festival grounds. Country Thunder – Calgary – August 15–18 Cannabis sales on site in an 18+ zone; minors permitted elsewhere on festival grounds. "We're proud to share that this past weekend's festival marked a successful step forward in integrating legalized cannabis into the live music experience. Our on-site cannabis sales were handled with the highest standards of compliance and responsibility, working closely with regulators to ensure a safe and seamless guest experience," said Gerry Krochak, Director of Corporate Partnerships, Rockin' Thunder and Country Thunder."The feedback from festival goers was overwhelmingly positive — guests appreciated the convenience and atmosphere, and we saw respectful, responsible enjoyment throughout the weekend. We're excited about the future of enhancing festival culture in a thoughtful and progressive way. We're also happy to have this partnership lined up for our Country Thunder event in Calgary this August." "This was a historic moment — we're proud to be the first retailer in Canada to offer legal cannabis sales at an all-ages event. Through careful planning, designated consumption areas, and clear separation from minors, we demonstrated that cannabis can be safely and responsibly integrated into major live events. This sets a new benchmark for what's possible in the evolving entertainment and cannabis landscapes," said Scott. Great Outdoors Comedy Festival – Edmonton – Adults Only Returning for the second year as a trusted on-site cannabis vendor. "We're proud to partner with Plantlife Cannabis as our on-site retail partner. Their commitment to education, compliance, and responsible consumption sets the standard for cannabis retail at live events. They've created a safe and welcoming experience that aligns perfectly with the values of the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival ," said Mike Anderson, President Trixstar Entertainment, Great Outdoors Comedy Festival A First in Cannabis + Culture Integration Plantlife's approach to festival retail includes: Verified ID checks to enter retail zone extensions Branded but compliant signage inside retail zones Product education, not just transactions Partnerships with event organizers for safety and access planning "We're not just showing up to sell," said Scott. "We're there to educate, engage, and help cannabis feel like a normal, safe part of Alberta's cultural moment." Media Access & Interviews Press, content creators, and community partners are invited to: Visit the Plantlife booth at The Great Outdoors Comedy Festival for exclusive behind-the-scenes access Request interview from Plantlife team Request high-res photos, branding, and team bios Note on Compliance All sales and promotional activity are conducted in alignment with the Cannabis Act and AGLC regulations. No cannabis is sold or consumed in the presence of minors. Branded materials are factual, non-glamorized, and focused on responsible access.
CTV News
17-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Alcohol service offered 24/7 at Alberta casinos under new pilot program
Under a new pilot program that began July 1, 2025, alcohol can be served at 13 Alberta casinos wherever gaming activity is taking place. (Pexels/cottonbro studio) A new pilot program at several Alberta casinos is allowing guests to order drinks 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) says the trial run, which began July 1, is aimed at matching liquor service with the hours that slot machines operate inside the businesses. The casinos in the pilot include: PURE Casino Calgary; Deerfoot Inn & Casino Calgary; Ace Casino Blackfoot Calgary; Ace Casinos Airport Calgary; Grey Eagle Casino Calgary area; PURE Casino Lethbridge; Cash Casino Red Deer; River Cree Edmonton area; PURE Casino Edmonton; PURE Casino Yellowhead Edmonton; Century Casino Edmonton; Great Northern Casino Grande Prairie; and Rivers Casino Fort McMurray. The casinos involved in the pilot will need to follow a number of conditions, including work to ensure patron safety by limiting liquor service only to areas where gaming activity is taking place, maintaining incident logs between midnight and 9 a.m. and prohibiting off-sales during the extended hours. 'Operators are required to uphold strong responsible consumption and gambling policies, with ProServe, ProTect and DealUsIn staff all on site during these hours,' AGLC said in a statement to CTV News. Matt Jarvis A poker player twirls his chips while playing his hand during a game at a poker championship in Calgary, Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh The agency said extended liquor service is not a new concept in Alberta. 'AGLC regularly considers extended service hours for major international sporting events or for major community events. Alberta also allows 24-hour liquor service in licensed airport restaurants and lounges,' officials said. AGLC says the pilot will run for six months and once that time has elapsed, it will evaluate the results and reports from participants before making lasting changes.
CTV News
20-06-2025
- CTV News
$12.3M of illegal tobacco seized in Edmonton busts
Alberta officials say an estimated $12.3 million in illegal cigarettes and cigars has been recovered in Edmonton. (Supplied) Alberta officials say an estimated $12.3 million in illegal cigarettes and cigars has been recovered in Edmonton. In a Friday press release, Alberta Gaming Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) said it had seized nearly 67,000 cartons of illegal tobacco products with the help of Edmonton police. 'Keeping illegal tobacco off the streets helps make our communities safer and supports local businesses that work hard to ensure they are following the law and selling legal products,' said AGLC CEO Kandice Machado in the release. Nineteen-thousand cartons, and 50 kilograms of contraband shisha tobacco, were recovered in a commercial warehouse and garage after a two-week investigation. AGLC said the discovery had about $3.5 million in retail value, with a provincial tax avoidance of $1.1 million. Another three-week long investigation led officials to a person using commercial storage lockers, a warehouse and a vehicle to store and traffic the illegal products. AGLC said 47,000 cartons and 100 kilograms of shisha were found, representing about $8.8 million in retail value and $2.9 million in tax avoidance. No details were given on when the seizures were made or where in the city. Criminal charges are pending in both investigations. AGLC said illegally manufactured products post public health and safety risks because they lack regulatory controls. Products include any tobacco without a red or peach-coloured stamp to show duties have been paid. In the last year, AGLC said agents have carried out more than 255 investigations and seized more than $40 million in contraband tobacco.
CBC
10-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Alberta lifts ban on American liquor imports — but local demand for U.S. booze isn't the same
Social Sharing The Alberta government has lifted its ban on American liquor imports, but that doesn't necessarily mean there will be more U.S. booze landing on shelves anytime soon. Following the province's lifting of a three-month ban on American liquor imports, provincial alcohol regulator Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) announced on June 6 that it will once again accept liquor products from the United States. WATCH | Will consumers go back to American booze? Alberta gives U.S. liquor imports another shot, but will consumers imbibe? 15 hours ago Duration 1:51 But with a 25 per cent tariff on all American alcohol imports, the buy-local sentiment by Canadian consumers may not be going away anytime soon. Andrew Ferguson, owner of Kensington Wine Market, said that after over two decades in the liquor business, he hasn't seen anything like the consumer backlash stemming from the Canada-U.S. trade war. "If people aren't buying American products like they were before, they're not going to buy them at a premium," he said on price mark-ups due to tariffs. He said that his store's American liquor sales, which prior to the trade war accounted for around 10 per cent of business, have plummeted. With that in mind, Ferguson's not eager to make any major purchases from down south. "When there's no certainty for us in terms of what our cost is going to be, whether people are even going to want it, it's difficult to make a decision, so you don't," he said. "If people aren't buying them, we're not gonna restock them." He called the lifting of the import ban "a non-decision in some ways," as even with the ban lifted, the 25 per cent tariff on U.S. alcohol imports is unlikely to motivate local importers to purchase American liquor. "Margins in the liquor industry aren't huge for either the importers or the retailers," said Ferguson. "Maybe if you're Jack Daniel's, you can afford to eat that tariff cost and you're going to want to probably have your products in stock for Stampede," he said. "But for a lot of the small and medium-sized players, it's going to be too much of a burden to eat that, so they'll just wait until this passes over." Matt Stortz, general manager of Cork Fine Wine, Liquor & Ale in Calgary, said he doesn't expect the lifting of the import ban to have a significant impact on retail operations at his store. He said that while demand for American liquor has noticeably dropped, U.S. products have remained on his shelves. "We did pause buying American products for a couple weeks, but in general, we carry the products that our customers love from the people that we know that make good quality things," Stortz said. He said uncertainty remains around what retail pricing of American liquor will look like with tariffs, but pointed to a recent markup on Alberta wine prices as a more immediate issue for him. Significant drop in U.S. liquor imports Amid bans and restrictions implemented by other provinces, American liquor imports into Canada have taken a noticeable hit. Canada, which according to the American Association of Wine Economists was the largest export market for American wine last year, has seen a 93 per cent drop in wine imports from the States. Last November, U.S. wine exports to Canada were valued at $54 million. This April, they plummeted to $2.7 million. U.S. liquor imports are down across the board in Canada — malt and beer imports have dropped 50 per cent since last April, while distilled liquors are down 56 per cent, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Yvonne Martinez, president of the Alberta Liquor Store Association, said the decline could largely be attributed to other provinces such as Ontario and B.C., but that the buy-local sentiment in Alberta has certainly had an impact. "Here in Alberta, we definitely see people moving towards Canadian products … or made anywhere else but the United States," she said. She said that "from the perspective of the liquor industry," the province's decision to lift the ban "was a good move." But while stores with customers looking for American products may benefit, the buy-local movement across the province and country remains dominant — though it's unclear how long that will last, Martinez said. "Whether that will change now that the premier made her announcement, and depending on what happens with the United States and Canada and their trade talks, I can see them changing their mind and maybe giving [American products] another look," she said. Province encourages shopping local While AGLC is now permitted to accept American liquor imports, the province is still promoting the buy-local sentiment, said Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally in a statement. "As always, we encourage Albertans to continue supporting local producers, even as more U.S. options return to store shelves," the minister said. He said the decision to lift the import ban "sets the stage for more constructive negotiations ahead of a Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement renewal, potentially leading to increased trade opportunities and economic growth for Alberta." He also pointed to Prime Minister Mark Carney's efforts to reset the U.S. trade relationship, as well as Alberta's unique privatized liquor marke t, as being factors behind the decision. "We are focused on highlighting Alberta's role as a responsible and collaborative trading partner and will continue working alongside other provinces to advocate for a tariff free relationship," he said.
CTV News
07-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
‘To say that our American sales fell off a cliff would not be an exaggeration:' Calgary wine store owner
Andrew Ferguson, the owner of the Kensington Wine Market, said sales of U.S. liquor have 'fallen off a cliff'. Sales of American booze have 'fallen off a cliff' for one Calgary wine store owner, but luckily for the Kensington Wine Market, it's a pretty shallow cliff. After it was confirmed that Alberta Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis (AGLC) will resume selling American liquor products after a three-month pause, Kensington Wine Market owner Andrew Ferguson said that they never actually went away. "They are bringing it back but they're bringing it back with a tariff on it,' he said. 'I think it might surprise people in Alberta, but stores and restaurants have not been prevented from buying American products for the past three months -- but I think like most, we've seen a massive decrease in demand for it." On Friday, the AGLC announced it will 'resume accepting liquor products from the United States, effective immediately,' at the direction of the provincial government. This will affect all liquor products registered with the AGLC and declared to Canada Border Services Agency. Products that were shipped from the U.S. after March 4 will continue to be subject to a surtax of 25 per cent of the invoice price, the AGLC added. 'I think when it all went down, I think a lot of people thought, 'oh, you're going to just stop selling this stuff immediately,'' Ferguson said, 'but they don't realize that before a bottle of bourbon or wine or Canadian whiskey or whatever gets delivered to our stores, we have to pay for it. 'So we already own that stuff -- so the idea that we aren't going to sell something that we've already paid for is a bit tough (to swallow),' he said. What really changed, he said, was the appetite among customers for made-in-the-U.S.A. booze. 'It's a big drop in demand,' he said. 'The natural depletion of a case of wine – like maybe we'll sell through in about two or three weeks -- but we've had some where we haven't even sold (through) an American case in three months." Ferguson said U.S. liquor generally amounts to around 10 per cent of his sales, but that has gone down since Trump's tariffs were announced. 'There are still people buying it (U.S. alcohol) and we don't take a place of judgement on it – (but) we've (also) got lots of alternatives for them,' he said. 'I'd say by and large the bigger response has been 'I want a bottle of whiskey for cocktails or I want a bottle of wine. I don't want an American product.'" 'By and large, the disproportionate response has been more the other way,' he added. 'And for those people that want to continue to purchase their favourite American products, we still carry a lot of them but not as many as we might have had three months ago.' Support Canadian producers The initial decision was made to support Canadian producers in the wake of U.S. tariffs, Premier Danielle Smith said in March. 'If the Americans aren't going to buy products from our Canadian companies, we have to,' the premier said. 'That means we should be buying more Canadian beer, more Canadian spirits and more Canadian wine. And so that's the reality of what we're facing.' Ferguson said there was plenty of alternatives to American liquor. 'Whether it's wine or especially beer here in Alberta, or spirits, there's a lot of great alternatives,' he said. 'So if you want an alternative to bourbon, we've got alternatives to bourbon here. 'We've got great wines, not only from Canada but other countries with which we have a fair trading relationship.' Lifting restrictions In a statement Friday night, Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Dale Nally said the government lifting restrictions on the purchase of U.S. alcohol and video lottery terminals signals a 'renewed commitment to open and fair trade with our largest partner.' 'The decision sets the stage for more constructive negotiations ahead of a Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement renewal, potentially leading to increased trade opportunities and economic growth for Alberta,' Nally added. Ferguson said the lack of clarity and unpredictability of the supply chain created by Trump's tariffs is taking a toll on consumer habits. 'Maybe they (the UCP) know something we don't,' he said, 'that there's a trade deal that's coming soon between Canada and the U.S. and this is a way to offer a bit of a carrot. 'What we've seen overall,' he addedm '(is that) consumer demand is down, consumers are worried about their money -- and so the longer this drags on, the harder it's going to be on retail.' For more about the Kensington Wine Market, go here. With files from CTV's Tyler Barrow, Steven Dyer and Kevin Green
