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Jack Daniel’s maker says Canada pulling U.S. alcohol off store shelves is ‘worse than a tariff’
2025-03-05 12:51:19-05:00
Open this photo in gallery: A half-empty shelf of American whiskey is pictured at an LCBO location in Toronto, on March 4.Laura Proctor/The Canadian Press
Jack Daniel’s maker Brown-Forman Corp.’s CEO Lawson Whiting said on Wednesday Canadian provinces taking American liquor off store shelves was “worse than a tariff” and a “disproportionate response” to levies imposed by the Trump administration.
Several Canadian provinces have taken U.S. liquor off store shelves as part of retaliatory measures against President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
“I mean, that’s worse than a tariff, because it’s literally taking your sales away, [and] completely removing our products from the shelves,” Mr. Whiting said on a postearnings call.
Canada on Tuesday also imposed 25-per-cent tariffs on goods imported from the U.S., including wine, spirits, and beer.
Mr. Whiting, however, said that Canada accounted for only 1 per cent of their total sales and could withstand the hit.
He added the company would watch out for what happens in Mexico, which according to its annual report, made up 7 per cent of its 2024 sales.
Shares of the company were up about 8 per cent after the liquor maker reaffirmed its annual forecasts, which accounted for the impact of tariffs.
While Mr. Whiting warned of “continued uncertainty and headwinds in the external environment,” he said that he was confident of the company’s trajectory.
Brown-Forman has been reeling from a slowdown in demand so far this year, led by the U.S., Canada and Europe, which offset benefits from stronger sales in emerging markets such as Mexico and Poland.
The company has undertaken cost-cutting measures, including work-force reduction. Analysts have said this is a response to a more challenging environment both for the company and the broader spirits industry.
Net sales fell 3 per cent from a year ago to US$1.04-billion, compared with analysts’ estimate of US$1.07-billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
For fiscal 2025, Brown-Forman expects net sales growth in the range of 2 per cent to 4 per cent.
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