The federal Liberal government is supporting the wine industry across the province with an investment of $176.9 million over three years as part of the 2026 budget.
The investment marks the renewal of the Wine Sector Support Program, which was started in 2022 and provides financial support to wineries across Canada that are facing challenges, including those related to climate change and natural disasters such as flooding or wildfires.
During the Bald Range wildfire near Summerland, many winegrowers had their wineries impacted by the fire and, with a majority of the water going towards fighting the blaze, it left irrigation systems lacking the necessary water. Crops also got too ripe, making them unusable.
While the federal investment is a welcome support for B.C. Wine Growers, it won’t solve all the problems the industry is facing, said B.C. Wine Growers CEO Jeff Guignard.
“One federal announcement is not going to solve everything, but the bottom line, this is excellent and really welcome news for our industry. We’ve got rising costs and difficult market conditions. But this federal commitment to extend the wine sector support program for the next three years is going to give wineries greater confidence that they can plan, invest, and continue rebuilding. And that’s super important for us, not just for the wineries, but for the thousands of British Columbians whose livelihoods depend on this industry as well.”
With the high cost of living impacting all Canadians, including winegrowers, and the wine industry being so volatile, the new investment will help winegrowers and create a more sustainable industry, said Guignard.
“This program will mean millions of dollars to B.C.’s wine industry, and it couldn’t come at a better time, but allow businesses to make those decisions. Because even though it takes years for our crops to grow and produce wine, you still have your mortgage, you’re still paying rent, you’re still paying taxes, you’re still paying insurance, all those costs keep going. So this will help give that stability we need to continue rebuilding and then next up grow the world’s next great wine region right here in B.C., because that’s our real ambition.”
Not only will the investment benefit winegrowers and consumers, it will also provide a boost to the B.C. economy.
“Every single dollar that someone spends on a bottle of B.C. VQA, it returns five times to the B.C. economy what a bottle of imported wine does. Because you grow it here, and those are those farmers and the winemakers,” said Guignard.
