Study Shows B.C. Big Player in Wine Industry

Okanagan vineyard, B.C. | BCBusiness
A vineyard in the Okanagan, B.C.

B.C.’s economic impact on Canada’s $6.8 billion wine industry

In what the British Columbia Wine Institute called “the most comprehensive examination ever conducted in the Canadian wine industry,” the Canada 2011 Wine Industry Economic Impact Report has revealed that B.C. plays a key role in the country’s prosperous and expanding industry.

Commissioned by the Canadian Vintners Association, the Winery & Growers Alliance of Ontario, the British Columbia Wine Institute and the Winery Association of Nova Scotia, the report titled Canada’s Wine Economy – Ripe Robust Remarkable confirms the wine industry is a significant contributor to the overall Canadian economy, especially in Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec and Nova Scotia.

“The impacts are both direct and indirect. From job creation and tourism to tax generation and agricultural growth the wine industry benefits multiple business sectors across the entire Canadian economy,” said Dan Paszkowski, President, Canadian Vintners Association.

According to the study:

• British Columbians enjoy more than 47 million bottles (more than 234 million glasses) of Canadian wine each year.
• For every bottle of wine produced in B.C. there is $42 of economic impact generated.
• B.C. welcomes over 800,000 visitors each year through its wine economy—more than the province drew for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.
• The wine industry generates $476 million in tourism and tourism employment-related economic impact.
• Of the more than $298 million in federal and provincial taxes and liquor board mark up generated by the wine industry, in taxes alone the B.C. wine industry contributes $222 million.