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Introduction

This publication contains selected statistics on the control and sale of alcoholic beverages in Canada, namely:

1. The value and volume of domestic and imported alcoholic beverages sold by the kind of beverage
2. Imports and exports of alcoholic beverages
3. The net income from the sale of alcoholic beverages by provincial and territorial liquor authorities
4. The revenue derived by the provincial and territorial governments from the control of alcoholic beverages

The statistical tables are divided into two sections:

1. Sales of alcoholic beverages
2. Financial statistics

The first set of tables (Tables 1-1  to 7-2  ) provide detailed provincial and territorial statistics on the value and volume of alcoholic beverages sold by the type of beverage. Summary statistics are presented for both total sales and per capita sales (for the population aged 15 years and older). As well, tables are included on the import and export of alcoholic beverages.

The second set of tables (Tables 8  to 10 ) provides detailed current and summary historical statistics on the net income of the liquor authorities and the provincial and territorial government revenue from the control and sale of alcoholic beverages. To illustrate the connection between the different data series, reconciliation tables are included that link the net income statistics that are published in the annual reports of the liquor authorities to the data that are published in this report (Table 10  ).

Statistics on sales of alcoholic beverages by volume should not be equated with data on consumption. Sales volumes include only sales by liquor authorities and their agents, and sales by wineries and breweries and outlets that operate under license from the liquor authorities.

Consumption of alcoholic beverages would include all these sales, plus homemade wine and beer, wine and beer manufactured through brew-on-premises operations, all sales in duty-free shops and any unrecorded transactions.

Similarly, statistics on sales of alcoholic beverages by dollar value of sales should not be equated with consumer expenditures on alcoholic beverages. The sales data refer to the revenues received by liquor authorities etc, and these revenues include sales to licensed establishments such as bars and restaurants. The sales data do not, therefore, reflect the total amount spent by consumers on alcoholic beverages since the prices paid in licensed establishments are greater than the price paid by those establishments to the liquor authorities.

Per capita data is based on the population aged 15 and over.