Opening Remarks Before the Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology

by Dr. Alexander Caudarella
Chief Executive Office, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction
October 23, 2025

Ms. Chair, Deputy Chairs and committee members, thank you for inviting the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction – CCSA – to appear before you today to discuss Bill S-202, which would add warning labels on alcoholic beverages.

Alcohol is one of the leading preventable causes of death and social harm in Canada. Our Canadian Substance Use Costs and Harms report shows that alcohol costs our country nearly $20 billion every year, while generating only $13 billion in government revenue. That $6.4 billion shortfall is carried by people and communities across Canada through crowded emergency departments, social costs and lost productivity. When harms outweigh revenues by this margin, people in Canada deserve clear, standardized information where choices are made – on the label.

As this committee has heard, alcohol is a Group 1 carcinogen – the highest level of certainty that a substance causes cancer. It is linked to at least seven cancers and contributes to liver disease and cardiovascular conditions. Yet many people in Canada remain unaware of these risks, and that lack of awareness has consequences.

This confusion is not surprising. Even this week, a major news story downplayed the link between alcohol and cancer. The evidence is unequivocal: two of the 50 substances classified as Group 1 carcinogens – ethanol and acetaldehyde – are found in alcohol. It is therefore critical to explore strategies that reduce alcohol-related harms for people in Canada. People need clarity to cut through industry-driven messaging and make informed choices that align with their health and values.

Currently, people are motivated to improve their health and to monitor and limit their alcohol consumption, yet we are not making it easy for them at the point of purchase.

In 2023, my organization released Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health, developed by 23 experts from 16 institutions. This work was commissioned by Health Canada as an update to the 2011 Low-Risk Drinking Guidelines, which were also released by CCSA. The guidance reflects the most recent scientific understanding of alcohol and its effect on the health of people in Canada. Importantly, it also found that alcohol container labelling could be a particularly effective option for reducing alcohol-caused harms.

Mandatory health information labels on alcohol containers are a proven public health strategy. They include health warnings, standard drink information and up-to-date national drinking guidance to inform people about the risks of alcohol use.

Current Canadian regulations do not require alcohol containers to include health messages, standard drink information or national drinking guidance. Even nutrition labels and ingredient lists are required only in exceptional circumstances.

Alcohol is not subject to the same rigorous health labelling requirements applied to other regulated psychoactive substances such as tobacco and cannabis. The evidence is strong and growing that enhanced labels on alcohol containers increase knowledge of health risks, support informed decision making, and improve public awareness of the health and behavioural harms associated with alcohol use.

A 2023 Government of Canada survey found that 59 per cent of people in Canada believe alcohol should not be exempt from the health labelling requirements currently applied to tobacco and cannabis. A majority of youth aged 16 to 19 agreed that such labels would help them make informed decisions.

A growing number of institutions have also urged decision-makers to act, including the World Health Organization, the Canadian Cancer Society, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, provincial and territorial medical officers of health, and the Canadian Public Health Association.

In 1987, the Standing Committee on National Health and Welfare toured the country and came back with recommendations, supported by all parties, on substance use. One of those recommendations led to the creation of my organization, CCSA. Another called for warning labels on all alcoholic beverages.

Since then, there have been over a dozen attempts to move this issue forward through bills, motions and other instruments. Today, the scientific understanding is clear. Public and institutional support is significant. Labels are a cost-effective public health intervention. So why, after all this time, are we all still debating their value? What is the risk here?

In 2025, Count Chocula has more to tell people in Canada about the health effects of his cereal than Budweiser does about its beer.

People in Canada have a right to know. I am a family physician, and I can tell you that people feel uncertain about the world today. They come into my office, as they do into offices across the country, looking for clarity on how to improve their health and how to live longer. Period.

I am not saying we need to tell people how to live their lives. But they have a right to understand how alcohol affects their health and to make the decisions that work for them.

This must be something that reaches everyone. As the U.S. surgeon general said 10 months ago, most people who will develop cancer from alcohol use do not have a substance use disorder or addiction – and he was right.

The onus is on all of us to ensure that people in Canada have clear, simple access to the information they need and want – and to finally move forward with enhanced labels on alcohol containers.

Thank you for the invitation to speak with you today about this important issue.