• Home
  • Site Map
  • News
Invest in Norfolk County
Norfolk County Economic Development
Contact | 800-699-9038
  • Text Size A A A
  • Toggle Contrast:
    Twitter
    Visit Us
    Follow Me
    Tweet
    Facebook
    Facebook
    fb-share-icon
    Instagram
    Pinterest
    Pinterest
    Pin Share
    YouTube
    YouTube
    Trip Advisor
    • Advantages
      of Norfolk
      • Infrastructure
      • Location
      • Pride & Innovation
      • Quality of Life
      • Vision
    • Stats &
      Demographics
      • Our Economy
      • Communities
      • Farm Data
    • Key
      Industries
      • Agriculture
      • Manufacturing
      • Tourism
    • Properties
      & Process
      • Industrial Parkland
      • Properties Available
      • Surplus Properties
      • Maps
      • Development Process
      • Green Light Team
    • Incentives
      & Supports
      • Business Incentive Grants
      • Entrepreneur of the Year
      • Expand & Relocate
      • Film Liaison Office
      • Start and Operate Alternative Accommodation
      • Student Start Up Program
      • Other Governments
    • Workshops
      & Events
      • Workshops
    • Request
      a Meeting
    • About Us
      & News
      • Contact Us
      • Awards
      • News
      • Strategy Review

    Ontario Government investing in small wineries, cideries, distillers

    September 27, 2019
    Ontario Government logo

    The Ontario Government is investing in the province’s small wineries, cideries and distilleries to strengthen the province’s beverage alcohol sector, and ensuring it can continue to grow and meet consumer demand.

    Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Ernie Hardeman announced a one-year transition funding of over $15 million dollars. This investment will help small wineries, cideries and distilleries with key business decisions and planning while the government continues to conduct its review of the beverage alcohol sector.

    This transition funding will also extend support to the following initiatives:

    • The Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) Wine Support Program to help Ontario wineries increase competitiveness and innovation. The program supports wineries investing in growing their VQA wine business, including tourism development activities.
    • The Small Cidery and Small Distillery Support Program to help eligible businesses grow and scale up their operations.
    • Marketing, Tourism and Export Development; Performance Measurement and Research and Development Initiatives.

    Minister Hardeman also announced that the government is making further changes to reduce red tape for the sector, making it easier for wineries, cideries, breweries and distilleries to market their products:

    • Giving wineries, cideries, breweries and distilleries with a “By the Glass” licence the flexibility to extend the allowed service hours from 9 a.m. to 12 a.m., seven days a week.
    • Allowing authorized wineries to sell their wine at farmers’ markets and return unsold products to their on-site retail store within a 72-hour period. The previous 24-hour period forced wineries to bring products back and forth over the course of the weekend which made retailing at farmers’ markets not economically viable.

    These changes reflect the government’s commitment to providing more choice and convenience for consumers, creating further opportunities for businesses, and reducing regulatory burden on craft producers in the province.

    Additionally, these improvements are part of Ontario’s Open for Business approach that focus on helping to grow the industry, including the wine and grape sector, as well as the fast-growing craft beer, cider and distillery sectors.

    “Our government’s priority is to make Ontario more competitive, and this includes strengthening the craft producers’ sector,” said Ernie Hardeman, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “By delivering these transition programs, we are recognizing the urgent needs of the industry and helping small and medium-sized wineries, cideries and distilleries scale up, drive tourism, and increase demand for quality Ontario grapes, apples and grains.”

    • Read the full Ontario Government news release
    Twitter
    Visit Us
    Follow Me
    Tweet
    Facebook
    Facebook
    fb-share-icon
    Instagram
    Pinterest
    Pinterest
    Pin Share
    YouTube
    YouTube
    Trip Advisor
    About the Author
    Social Share

      Recent News

      • Export Readiness Seminars January 27, 2020
      • Dynamic speakers tabbed for Economic Development Symposium January 27, 2020
      • Employers wanted for Multi-Sector Job Fair March 2 January 21, 2020
      • Annual Report 2019: Norfolk County Tourism and Economic Development January 21, 2020
      • SWIFT announces high-speed broadband projects in Norfolk County January 20, 2020

      News Categories

      News Archives

      Norfolk County Logo

      Norfolk County
      Economic Development
      185 Robinson St., Suite 200
      Simcoe ON  N3Y 5L6 Canada
      Contact Us
      Call 1-800-699-9038

      Development News

      Subscribe to Development News email bulletins

      Browse Latest News

      Links

      Norfolk Tourism
      Norfolk Farms
      Norfolk County
      EDCO
      EDAC

      Contact Us

      • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
      © 2019 Norfolk County Economic Development
      Designed & Developed by Interkom Inc.