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American liquor needs to come off Saskatchewan shelves again, according to NDP Leader Carla Beck.
In March, the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) released a list of more than 50 American alcohol brands it said it wouldn’t be purchasing in retaliation against the threat of tariffs from the United States.
Just three weeks later that decision was amended to exempt American brands that are partially made in Canada.
Beck made the call on Friday, following U.S. President Donald Trump’s order to impose 35-per-cent tariffs on non-CUSMA compliant goods, saying the provincial government needs to stand up.
She also called for the government to prioritize Canadian procurements.
Scott Moe needs to grow a backbone.
These latest Trump tariffs hammer six per cent of Saskatchewan’s exports, but it’s 100 per cent of peoples’ jobs. pic.twitter.com/EjlqCCB3Cb
— Carla Beck (@CarlaBeckSK) August 1, 2025
Read more:
- Moe disappointed by Trump’s tariffs but says Carney should remove countermeasures
- Saskatchewan exports still mostly tariff-free under CUSMA: Moe
- Trump pushed tariffs on Canada to 35 per cent, but a CUSMA carveout creates a shield
“Let’s remove that booze off the shelves again. Let’s go back to procuring goods in this province through Canadian sources, and let’s show a backbone,” Beck said.
Beck said the removal of American alcohol would be a symbolic gesture, showing U.S. legislators that Saskatchewan won’t back down.
“This is not a time to show weak resolve, to be wishy-washy in the face of a fight that we didn’t pick,” she said, adding that prioritizing Canadian procurements would prevent the province from ever being in a position again where the U.S. holds so much power.
Beck said Saskatchewan has already seen an 11 per cent decrease in exports since Trump took office in January, and since that time has experienced job losses and economic stagnation.
She said Premier Scott Moe had downplayed these impacts by saying American tariffs only impact six per cent of Saskatchewan’s economy.
“That six per cent might seem like a small number to the premier, but that potentially impacts 100 per cent of (someone’s) job, their business, their livelihood,” she said, adding that Moe seems to forget about the province’s $400 million steel industry.
While Beck wants the province to take a harder stance in the tariff fight, she’s not interested in imposing counter-tariffs on the U.S.
Instead, she said Saskatchewan needs to ensure American legislators understand the power this province has, specifically in terms of uranium and potash exports.
Without Saskatchewan, the U.S. would need to source these minerals from other countries, potentially including Russia.
“Americans need what we have. Let’s stop acting like we don’t have leverage here,” she said.
While Beck wants the U.S.-Canada trading relationship to return to normal, it can’t be done, “with a gun to our head.”
Negotiating a deal that benefits people across the country will take a show of strength from all Canadian leaders, according to Beck, and that includes Moe.
“We can’t be that weak spot,” she said.
— with files from CJME’s Gillian Massie and CJME News
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