$23M deal reached to keep Crown Royal on LCBO shelves

Ontario Premier Doug Ford empties a Crown Royal bottle of whisky at a press conference in Kitchener, Ont., on Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. Ford criticized the popular whisky's parent company, Diageo, for their plan to close one of their Ontario bottling plants in the coming months. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan

Crown Royal will remain on LCBO shelves after its manufacturer committed to $23 million in new investments in Ontario.

Premier Doug Ford had previously threatened to pull the whisky from LCBO shelves in retaliation for its decision to shutter a bottling plant in Amherstburg, Ont., and move some jobs to the U.S.

But in a news release on Friday afternoon, the Ontario government said that it had reached an agreement with Diageo, the spirits company that produces Crown Royal.

It said that under the agreement Diageo will make $23 million in new investments in Ontario alongside a “commitment to explore options to establish a new Ontario canning facility.”

In exchange, Crown Royal products made by Diageo will continue to be available for purchase through the LCBO.”

“By standing firm in our plan to protect Ontario workers, we’ve secured nearly $23 million in investments that Ontario would not otherwise have seen,” Ford said in the release. “These investments will help keep Ontario workers on the job, strengthen provincial supply chains and support the local community in Amherstburg and the surrounding area.”

Back in September, Ford dumped an entire bottle of Crown Royal on the ground during a press conference in protest of Diageo’s decision to shutter its Amherstburg, Ont. plant.

He then announced that Ontario would pull Crown Royal from LCBO shelves once the plant closed its doors this month.

Ford, however, soon faced criticism from Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew who pointed out that Crown Royal was still distilled in his province and implored him to not “shoot ourselves in the foot” to punish Diageo.

“I’m asking you to reconsider because this is about sticking together as Team Canada,” Kinew said in a statement directed to Ford.

Ford, however, pressed on. When asked by reporters in January whether he still planned to remove Crown Royal from LCBO shelves, the premier said “I can’t wait” and then suggested that the company would eventually move all production to the U.S.

“It’s all a bunch of BS. It’s all going to Alabama. Mark my words, it’s going to Alabama,” he said.

The Ontario government says that the agreement announced on Friday came after “months of discussions with Diageo .”

Under the agreement, the spirits company will make an $11 million investment in purchasing grain neutral spirits manufactured by Greenfield Global in Johnstown, Ontario.

It will also invest $3 million in new ready-to-drink canned beverages that will be delivered to the Canadian market through a Toronto-based co-packer.

Other investments include:

• $500,000 to Invest WindsorEssex for economic development with a focus on Amherstburg and the surrounding area, and $500,000 to other community projects to support residents of Amherstburg
• $1 million in direct funding to organizations that support the growth and sustainability of Ontario’s agricultural sector
• $2 million investment in new packaging for pre-mixed beverages through a new co-manufacturer in Scarborough
• $5 million in Ontario-based marketing and promotion