LCBO advising Ontarians to start their holiday shopping early as shelves could be emptier this year
The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) is advising Ontarians to start their holiday alcohol shopping early as ongoing global supply chain issues may cause shelves to be emptier than usual this year.
Shortages of certain alcohols and aluminum are just a few fallouts of a long line of supply chain issues across the country.
According to the LCBO, transportation issues, an imbalance of equipment, congestion in ports and blank sailings are resulting in an average three-week shipping delay, with some locations experiencing up to a six-week delay.
This accounts for approximately a third of LCBO’s stock shortages, they say. The remaining shortages have been prompted by suppliers’ inability to keep up with continued changes in consumer demand amid the pandemic.
“We encourage customers to shop early this year for the best selection of gifts and holiday favourites, be flexible about choice, and take the opportunity to try something new if a particular brand or product favourite is not available,” an LCBO spokesperson said in a statement to CTV News Toronto on Friday.
The LCBO has identified certain products that have been impacted more significantly by global supply shortages and shipping delays, including “some champagnes and sparkling sets, new world wines (New Zealand, Australia, South America), import spirits (particularly tequila and scotch), and international beer/cider.”
The retailer has provided some key dates and deadlines for home delivery, delivery to local stores and same-day pickups.
If you would like products delivered to your home, the LCBO is asking that customers place their orders online by Dec. 15 for delivery by or before Christmas Eve. For delivery to a local branch, they are asking customers to place their orders online by Dec. 12 for pickup by Dec. 24. For same-day pickup, orders must be placed at least three hours before closing on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.
“We appreciate our customers’ continued patience as we navigate global supply issues facing the international beverage alcohol industry,” the company said.
The LCBO said they're expecting some of the shortages to last into the new year and that they "appreciate [customer's] continued understanding."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.