Beer prices up yet again...

[cattersley]

Looking the beer store website as usual to check if there was any new beers to have a look at, I happend to glance on the price of Labatt 50... 24 - pack of bottles now 36.35. Now since Labatt raised there price, all Molson brands followed suit and there price had changed to the new standard price of 24. Looking at Canadian, Dry, and ICE, Molson had indeed followed, with also Bud and Coors naturally. I had since stopped buying Molson and Labatt product since I was in my teens, being you could by a 6 pack then for 7.25, now 11.10. This has just furthered my stance on not buying there beers again...

So... who is to blame here? The brewers monolpoly, uhhh I mean retail... or the sin taxes that seem to climb during the new budget from Provincal or Federal Parliments? In Britain CAMRA fights for the rights of beer drinkers, one issue is of over taxation, and unfair prices of beers. Canadian beer drinkers should have someone standing up for them like the Britons across the pond. But hold on... doesn't the Canadian tax-payers federation fight on our behalf? Well. I have tried emailing them numorous times for the past couple of years to get information on the taxation of alcohol, and what they were doing in response to increases. I am still awaiting single reply.

To all Canadians, I would love to here your opinions, suggestions, and ideas...

- cattersley.

[zoom6zoom]

Ideas? Start brewing your own. It'll be better than any of that BMC swill, too.

[Richard English]

I am visiting Canada in April and I have been surprised at how expensive everything seems to be there, especially compared with the USA. The air fare from Seattle to Kelowna or Pentiction (an hour's flight) would cost me the same as my flight from London to Chicago - so I shall take the bus to Vancouver and then drive.

I am actually taking the train from Chicago to Seattle and that will still be cheaper than the air fare would have been into Canada - or the rail fare from Wisconsin to Kamloops.

So far as beer is concerned, CAMRA is quite happy to have overseas members or maybe you could even form a chapter.

[shugalou]

I can't believe a 24 costs so much, I wonder if the import beers will follow suit and raise their already high prices.

Being that we live in Ontario we should be used to being taxed. It will continue to happen as long as it's allowed to happen, so unless something huge happens the prices will only continue to increase....but maybe on the long weekend they can make us feel like we are getting a deal when they introduce a Walmart style campaign and roll back the prices to 2006...oh wait why would they want to remind the consumer that prices have increase.... maybe they'll throw in some promotional item that was made in a 3rd world country with a canadian logo on it :)


I remember those days when beer was $7.35 for a 6 pack also, this will just drive up the demand for U brew stores and Homebrew equipment supply stores. Although I wouldn't be suprised if the impose some sort of tax to make up for money they are loosing out on.

[cattersley]

I recently inquired to the LCBO via email about taxes and charges on beers. wines, etc.

Here is the price break down for beer from Ontario:


Supplier (including freight) $14.51
Government of Ontario (tax) $14.31
Government of Canada (tax) $4.24
Container Deposit $2.40
CONSUMER PRICE $35.45

This is for before the prices went up. This is disgusting. There is no way in hell the Goverment of Ontario can justify this!

If anyone is interested seeing the spread sheet, email me at cattersley@yahoo.ca for complete break down of prices.

Regards, cattersley.

[Jake]

You have free goverment health care in Canada. Could that be the reason for such high taxes? The last time I was in Canada we visited P.E. Island in 1999. I did notice things were a bit pricey. We did something wrong with saving recepts and did not get our tax money back.

[cattersley]

Health care in Canada isn't free. It is paid for through our Federal and Provincal taxes. Gas is a 45% direct tax (Pro/Fed), alcohol is 51% direct tax (Pro/Fed), tobacoo is very high 60 - 70 % taxe range(Pro/Fed), everytime you buy something from a shirt to pack of gum you pay 6% GST (Federal), and 8 % PST (Provincal). Since our land ownership laws are different than the US we pay high property taxes depending on the province... You get the idea, and the list goes on.

Again health care is not free, it is paid through our taxes, and it excludes some basic health care needs such as eye care, foot care, chiropractic care depending on the province or territory.

- cattersley

[Richard English]

Quote "...gain health care is not free, it is paid through our taxes..."

I think this is begging the question. As in the UK, health care is free at the point of delivery (so I don't need to pay to see my GP, call an ambulance of have an operation) but obviously it has to be paid for, and as seems to be the case in Canada, that payment comes from taxes.

In any society, the Government has no money of its own, so anything the Government "pays for" comes from the pockets of its citizens. Any state provision will mean taxation for that provision - there is no way around that.

Of course, the countries with the highest taxes don't necessarily provide the highest levels of state care - or vice versa. Some countries are more efficient than others in managing their money (just like some people).

The country with the highest taxes (54.2% of GDP) is Sweden, followed by Denmark at 48.8 % of GDP. The USA does far better than that with only 29.6% of GDP being taken. The UK and Canada are taxed a little more heavily than the USA with 37.4% and 35.8 % of GDP respectively (SOURCE: OECD Revenue Statistics).

For myself I prefer to pay 5% more tax, secure in the knowledge that, should I fall ill or have an accident, I won't have any hospital, doctor or drugs bills to pay.