Nova Scotia relaxes alcohol laws
The Canadian province of Nova Scotia will allow local producers to cross-sell alcohol and set up secondary retail stores in the coming months.
In a bid to support local distilleries, wineries, breweries and cideries, the Nova Scotia government is relaxing two rules for the sale of alcohol.
From early August, the province will allow producers to sell each other’s products at their locations, from vineyards to distilleries and breweries.
Starting from autumn, local manufacturers can also open a separate retail store that can be located separately from the production facility.
Currently, a vineyard, cidery, brewery, or distillery can have more than one retail store only if each one is attached to a production site.
“Local producers have been asking for these changes. We’ve listened – these changes will strengthen their industry and allow them to sell more products here at home,” said Nova Scotia premier Tim Houston. “Nova Scotians love supporting local, and these changes offer them more choice.”
However, there will be limits on how much product one producer can sell that is made by another local company. The details of the deal are to be part of a discussion with the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC), which will be open to input from the industry this summer.
There are currently 120 licensed alcohol producers in Nova Scotia. Total sales of local products at the NSLC totalled CA$150.9 million (US$107.5m) for the 2025-2026 financial year, an increase of CA$15.2m (US$10.8m) on the previous 12 months.
The changes come several months after Nova Scotia and Ontario signed a deal to allow direct-to-consumer (DTC) alcohol sales between the two Canadian provinces.
Since July 2025, Ontario and 10 other jurisdictions have signed a memorandum of understanding that commits them to advance nationwide DTC alcohol sales by May 2026.
In May, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) called out local governments for their ‘lack of transparency and progress’ regarding DTC alcohol sales across the country.
Besides the Ontario-Nova Scotia deal, only Manitoba and New Brunswick permit DTC sales of all alcohol, the CFIB said. The association has called other DTC agreements ‘fragmented’.
The move to increase cross-border sales comes as American spirits have been boycotted by all but two Canadian provinces since March 2025 due to a tariff dispute. Earlier this month, US congresswoman Claudia Tenney introduced a bill to initiate an investigation into Canada’s ‘discriminatory’ ban on American alcohol.
Nova Scotia sold the last of its US$14m American alcohol inventory in November, with proceeds donated to charity.
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