‘I Feel Sorry for Americans’: British Columbia Premier Says ‘There’s Not a Chance in Hell’ US Booze Will Return to Canadian Shelves

B.C. Premier David Eby looks on before a meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, May 20, 2026. (Photo: Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

Less than a day after the Trump administration imposed an additional 50% tariff on certain Canadian imports, British Columbia Premier David Eby stood firm by his province’s ban on U.S.-made alcohol. Prior to the now year-and-a-half-long boycott, British Columbia liquor stores purchased approximately $400 million worth of American wine, beer and spirits annually.

On Tuesday, Eby remarked at a press conference: “I feel sorry for Americans. If you can’t be friends with Canada, then you almost certainly do not have a friend anywhere in the world.”

“There is not a chance in hell that US alcohol is going back on the shelf in British Columbia,” Eby continued. “And I’m proud of that, and I know the British Columbians support that. And the idea of the President that he can bully us into whatever he wishes is incorrect.”

The new round of tariffs against Canadian imports will take effect on Aug. 19, targeting $20 billion worth of goods spanning wine, cement and hockey sticks. The proclamation was a direct response to the ongoing removal of US alcohol from Canadian government-run liquor stores, which began in early 2025 as a rebuttal of Trump’s tariff and annexation threats.

Eight of Canada’s ten provinces currently have full or partial bans on US booze. According to the Trump administration, US alcohol exports to Canada fell by approximately 81% between March 2025 and February 2026, costing the industry hundreds of millions in sales.

The vast majority of alcohol sales in Canada flow through government-run liquor stores, positioning provincial leaders like Doug Ford and David Eby as key decision-makers in the trade war.

The specifics of the ban have differed on a province-by-province basis. When the Liquor Control Board of Ontario removed American alcohol from its shelves, British Columbia took a slightly different approach. Eby initially pulled the sale of brands from “red states” that voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election. His plan barred distillers from Tennessee, home of Jack Daniel’s; Texas, famous for Tito’s Vodka; and Kentucky, responsible for 95% of the world’s bourbon, including myriad heavy hitters like Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark and Woodford Reserve.

Eby expanded the ban to all American beer, wine and spirits in March 2025 following the Trump administration’s tariff threats to the Canadian dairy and lumber industries.

Industry leaders warn that the latest escalation will take a steep toll north of the border. Trade body Spirits Canada says that in 2025 alone, 93% of Canada’s total spirits exports were destined for the US market. The organization has urged federal and provincial authorities to negotiate an immediate resolution to the conflict.