Alcohol Use in Canada: Data and Trends

Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health (CGAH)

On January 17, 2023, we released Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health (CGAH) which was commissioned and funded by Health Canada. This evidence-based report fundamentally shifts national low-risk drinking recommendations and concludes that even small amounts of alcohol carry some risk and that “if you drink… drinking less is better for health.” The Guidance presents a continuum of risk associated with alcohol use (refer to image). Public health campaigns (such as CCSA’s “Drink Less, Live More” campaign) and provincial public health agencies have been actively disseminating the less is better message of CGAH (refer also to “Rethink your Drink”). By early 2024, approximately 60% of Canadian adults reported having heard of the new CGAH — a notable reach considering it was released only a year prior.  

Alcohol Strength

In 2019, the Food and Drug Regulations were amended to restrict the alcohol content of flavoured purified alcoholic beverages. The amendments limit these beverages to a maximum of 1.5 standard drinks when sold in containers of 1,000 mL or less, unless they are sold in glass containers of 750 mL or more. The purpose was to reduce the risk of unintentional overconsumption from sweetened, highly palatable alcoholic beverages.
 

Health Warning Labels

Possibly the most significant proposed federal health measure is mandatory cancer warning labels on alcohol containers. Bill S-202 would mandate prominent warning labels on all alcoholic beverages sold in Canada. Specifically, it would amend the Food and Drugs Act to require labels stating that alcohol causes at least seven types of fatal cancer (including breast and colon cancer), what constitutes a "standard drink," and Canada's Guidance on Alcohol and Health. This proposal directly responds to the CGAH’s recommendation that providing clear health risk information (e.g. on labels) is vital for consumer awareness and harm reduction. By October 2025, S-202 was undergoing detailed study by a Senate committee, and by March 2026 it had advanced to third reading in the Senate. If passed, the bill would mark a major shift by aligning alcohol packaging with the kind of health warnings long required for tobacco products. 

Northwest Territories

The Northwest Territories (NWT) expanded its alcohol warning label program in April 2024 to include a label about cancer risk, making NWT the first jurisdiction to require an explicit cancer warning on alcohol containers. NWT and Yukon already had long-standing labels cautioning against alcohol use in pregnancy and impaired driving. No other province or territory has yet mandated such labels hence, a national labelling requirement like Bill S-202 is widely supported by public health experts to ensure consistency across Canada. 

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Bill C-46

Passed in June 2018, Bill C-46 amended the Criminal Code to modernize Canada’s impaired-driving laws and strengthen the criminal law response to both alcohol- and drug-impaired driving. The amendments created new drug-impaired driving offences based on prescribed blood drug concentrations, authorized police to use approved drug-screening equipment where drug impairment is suspected, introduced mandatory roadside alcohol screening for lawfully stopped drivers, simplified rules for proving blood alcohol concentration, and increased certain penalties for impaired-driving-related offences.

Manitoba

In 2026, Manitoba enacted new restrictions for drivers convicted of impaired operation. These restrictions prohibit drivers convicted of impaired operation related offences causing or resulting in bodily harm or death from driving with any alcohol in their blood. Breaches of the restriction will result in penalties which mirror those that apply to drivers with a Blood Alcohol Concentration [BAC] between 0.05 and 0.08% under the Immediate Roadside Prohibition Program, including additional license suspensions, monetary penalties, vehicle impoundment and other measures.   

The federal excise duty on alcohol is legislated to be automatically adjusted each year to keep pace with inflation. In 2023, the federal government capped this CPI-based adjustment at 2% (down from the automatic 6% correction) and later extended this 2% cap through 2026. This policy change would be expected to lead to a relative reduction in alcohol prices, as compared to other goods and services. It is possible that this may undermine public health efforts to reduce alcohol consumption and related harms as relative alcohol prices are reduced.

Ontario 

Ontario is phasing out a special tax on on-site wine sales to boost local wineries and adding a modest CAD $10 million over five years for social responsibility and public health programming to accompany the retail expansion. 

New Brunswick

In early 2024, New Brunswick’s government raised provincial alcohol taxes, resulting in an average price increase of about 2.8% across all alcoholic beverages. However, some products had larger changes, with a 24-pack of beer increasing by about $2 or 4.5%. Higher alcohol prices are one of the evidence-based strategies for reducing alcohol harms.

1. New Brunswick: Amended the Liquor Control Act and signed a memorandum of understanding to allow direct-to-consumer alcoholic beverage sales with other participating Canadian jurisdictions in July 2025.
    
2. Nova Scotia: In March 2026, Nova Scotia signed a direct-to-consumer alcohol sales agreement with Ontario to remove barriers so consumers can buy alcohol directly from their preferred out-of-province producers and open up new opportunities for local industry.
    
3. Ontario: The government of Ontario introduced many changes that increased the availability and access to alcohol in the province. In December 2023, it announced “the largest expansion of consumer choice… since the end of Prohibition”, with a plan to allow beer, wine, cider and ready-to-drink cocktails in up to 8,500 new retail outlets (convenience stores, big-box stores, some grocery stores and gas stations) by 2026. This significantly increased points of sale for alcohol. Ontario would become the third province (after Alberta and Quebec) to permit beer in corner stores, and uniquely the first to allow ready-to-drink cocktails in those outlets. In March 2026, the province also moved to widen “bring-your-own-alcohol” permit rules to include more types of public events (e.g., festivals) and in April 2026  announced the relaxing of alcohol restrictions in provincial parks.
    
4. Saskatchewan: In May 2023, the government of Saskatchewan amended its liquor laws to allow municipalities and park authorities to permit drinking in designated public outdoor spaces (like parks) if they choose. This measure gives local governments flexibility to allow responsible public alcohol consumption at events or parks, part of a broader provincial push to “modernize” liquor regulations.