TORONTO, Sept. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For the third time since 2015, Restaurants Canada has taken stock of liquor policies impacting foodservice and hospitality businesses from coast to coast in its biennial Raise the Bar report.
Restaurants Canada has raised Ontario's grade for the first time, from a D-plus to C-minus, recognizing the consultative approach and appetite for change demonstrated under the province's new leadership.
"Ontario's new government hit the ground running in 2018, immediately turning its attention to modernizing the regulatory framework for beverage alcohol," said James Rilett, Restaurants Canada Vice President, Central Canada. "As soon as the government begins to apply itself more seriously in the area of hospitality, the province will start to see more significant improvements in its grade."
Full 2019 Raise the Bar report card rankings:
Grade | Province |
B | Alberta |
B- | Nova Scotia |
B- | Prince Edward Island |
B- | Quebec |
C | British Columbia |
C | Manitoba |
C- | Ontario |
C- | Saskatchewan |
D- | New Brunswick |
D- | Newfoundland & Labrador |
Cheers to quick progress
Since launching its liquor legislation review, Ontario has already moved forward with a number of reforms.
While changes so far have mostly impacted retail settings, the following measures have directly benefited the province's bars and restaurants:
These red tape reductions have been welcomed as a sign of more good news to come for the foodservice and hospitality community.
Survey says...
Compared to two years ago, Ontario's licensed foodservice operators say liquor policies are:
Better | The same | Worse |
26% | 54% | 20% |
How can Ontario raise the bar for licensed establishments?
Visit info.restaurantscanada.org/raise-the-bar-2019 to download the full report and join in the online conversation with the hashtag #RaiseTheBar2019.
About Raise the Bar
Raise the Bar is a report produced every two years by Restaurants Canada evaluating the impact of liquor policies on bars and restaurants across the country.
Provincial policies evaluated for the 2019 Raise the Bar report were reviewed within the following four major categories and, after analysis and weighting, each province was given an overall letter grade:
All survey results featured in the 2019 Raise the Bar report were compiled from more than 700 responses to an online questionnaire that was emailed to foodservice operators across Canada between June 12 and Aug. 26, 2019.
About Restaurants Canada
Restaurants Canada is a national, not-for-profit association advancing the potential of Canada's diverse and dynamic foodservice industry through member programs, research, advocacy, resources and events. Canada's foodservice sector is an $89 billion industry that directly employs 1.2 million workers, is Canada's number one source of first jobs and serves 22 million customers across the country every day.
Attachment