Taking the fight for food tax fairness to Ottawa

29 septembre 2025 Share on your social channels

It has been a busy and productive couple of weeks for the Restaurants Canada team!

Restaurants Canada in Ottawa

It was a big week back in Ottawa for Restaurants Canada as we continued our conversations and lobby work around immigration, temporary foreign workers, removing GST from all food and strengthening the viability of the foodservice sector during this period of economic uncertainty.

I started the week at the National Tourism Sector Association roundtable, aligning on key priorities impacting the tourism industry. Collaboration continues to amplify our efforts.

Later at the One Hill of a Party tourism reception, I connected with MP Patrick Weiler, Chair of the Tourism Caucus, representing Canada’s 3rd highest restaurant sales riding—West Vancouver–Sunshine Coast–Sea to Sky. He remains a strong advocate for the sector, particularly on strategic immigration and access to international workers.

We also engaged with MP Tony Baldinelli (Niagara Falls), a valued ally in our ongoing advocacy.

Throughout the rest of the week I met with Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State for Small Business and Tourism Rechie Valdez, as well as Members of Parliament Ted Falk, Ginette Petitpas Taylor and Sean Casey. We also had a productive meeting with the Prime Minister’s Office and had many informal conversations with Secretary of State Jonny Zercuelli, Jason Kenney, Sheila Copps, policy makers and others at the Canada 2020 conference and the annual Politics & the Pen event.

Our message is gaining traction—conversations with key decision-makers confirm they’re listening to our advocacy on affordability, workforce, and related issues. The response to our FOODISFOOD.CA campaign was very positive and gaining more interest. Additionally, we were able to share important context, real data and information on the use of temporary foreign workers. While this remains a complex issue for our sector, it’s essential we use these programs responsibly and continue to uphold the industry’s integrity and reputation.

Canada Post strike

The launch of another nationwide strike by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers last week is deeply concerning. This escalation, following the previous week’s flyer delivery disruptions, is creating significant challenges for Canadians and restaurant operators who rely on Canada Post for communication and marketing.

Restaurants Canada is urging all parties—the union, Canada Post, and the federal government—to act quickly to resolve this issue. You can read our statement here.

RC Awards of Excellence

On September 16, we held our inaugural One Table event, celebrating the 2025 Awards of Excellence winners and bringing together industry leaders for a night of connecting, conversation and collaboration.

Congratulations to Cora Tsouflidou (Founder, Cora Breakfast & Lunch – Legacy Award), Julie Denton (Chief People & Technology Officer, Recipe Unlimited Corporation – Leadership Award), Chef Chris Commandant (National Arts Centre & Ontario Director and Secretary of the Indigenous Culinary of Associated Nations – Culinary Award), Chef Nick Chindamo (Naturalist & Wild Food Educator, The Inn at Bay Fortune – Emerging Leader Award), La Tablée des Chefs (Social Impact Award) and A&W Canada (Environmental Stewardship Award of Recognition).

I want to thank our sponsors and all of the attendees who helped make the event a success. The countdown is now officially on for our next One Table event, which will be held on September 29, 2026. Mark your calendars!

Foodservice Facts 2025 Debuts

One Table attendees also got a sneak preview and an advance copy of the 2025 Foodservice Facts report, which launched officially last week. This year, we cover trends like the rise of solo dining, the growing number of Canadians who are replacing traditional meals with snacks, and how you can expect sales to progress through 2026. If you haven’t already, you can download your copy now.

Board Meeting Update

We had another productive and meaningful board meeting, reflecting on the achievements of the past year and setting a clear, strategic course for the year ahead.

Restaurants Canada is committed to delivering strong, sustained impact for the foodservice sector. As previously announced, we’re making significant investments to support this goal—including the opening of our new satellite office in Ottawa, the expansion of our advocacy, policy and membership teams, increased investment in public relations campaigns to amplify our government relations efforts, and enhanced research and insights to strengthen our work and provide greater value to our members. All of this is essential to tackling the many urgent challenges facing our sector—from workforce shortages and tax burdens to sustainability, EPR, crime, and public safety. It’s through addressing these issues head-on that we can continue advancing our vision of vibrant, thriving foodservice communities across Canada.

Thank you again to our Board of Directors for their ongoing support and dedication.

Apply to compete at RC Show 2026

The wait is over — our final 4 competitions at RC Show 2026 are officially open for applications! With a total of 8 competitions, you don’t want to miss your chance to apply to compete!

This is your opportunity to showcase your craft, compete with top talent, and make your mark on the industry stage. Whether you brew, shake, or shuck, we’re ready to see your skills shine on our brand-new stage at The International Centre on March 8-10, 2026! »

Apply for your chance to compete here.

Recognizing the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Tomorrow is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation — a moment to pause, reflect and honour Survivors. Restaurants Canada is donating to the First Nations Child & Family Caring Society in support of Spirit Bear, which stands for fairness and justice for Indigenous children, representing 165,000 children impacted by the landmark human rights case on child welfare. In our industry, everything we do is about community and culture. That makes it even more important for us to acknowledge the wisdom and contributions of Indigenous peoples. Participating in truth and reconciliation is not only about reflection, but also about action and ensuring our industry continues to build connections rooted in respect, equity, and care.

SUSTAINABILITY UPDATE

From Jillian Rodak | Vice President, Sustainability

Proposed Expansion of City of Toronto’s Single-Use and Takeaway Items Bylaw

Earlier in September, the City of Toronto launched consultations on Phase 3 of their Single-Use and Takeaway Items (SUTI) bylaw. This phase proposes to expand the bylaw to include:

Mandating the use of reusable plates and cutlery for dine-in service
Allowing customers to bring their own food containers (expanding on the current allowance for reusable mugs/tumblers)
Large venues (such as event venues and stadiums)

As part of the consultation, the City has launched a public survey, open until October 16^th.

Restaurants Canada met with City officials in July to provide early feedback on the proposed changes. We highlighted the challenges the current bylaw has created for restaurants and called for a review of its effectiveness before any new requirements are introduced. We underscored that reuse policies must consider health and safety, operational realities, and consumer behaviour.

The City plans to bring forward a final report to Council in January 2026. Restaurants Canada will remain actively engaged throughout the process, advocating on behalf of members and sharing updates as new information becomes available.

Upcoming Conferences of Interest for Members

Restaurants Canada is pleased to share details on two upcoming sustainability-focused events that may be of interest to members.

Retail Council of Canada (RCC) Sustainability Conference 2025
RCC’s annual Sustainability Conference will take place October 29–30, 2025 at the Toronto Congress Centre. This conference brings together retailers, manufacturers, suppliers, solution providers, and sustainability leaders to explore topics such as extended producer responsibility (EPR), supply chain management, greenwashing, and more. Early bird registration rates are available until October 1, 2025. For full agenda details and to register, visit the conference website.
Reusable Packaging Innovation Showcase at ADM Tradeshow
ECCC and PAC Global will be hosting a Reusable Packaging Innovation Showcase as part of the Advanced Design & Manufacturing (ADM) tradeshow in Toronto. The showcase will run October 21–23, 2025, featuring two days of presentations and panels followed by a networking day. Members can access a complimentary showcase pass by using code “REUSE” when registering.

Gatineau Commercial Waste Bylaw

On September 16, the City of Gatineau approved a new commercial waste recycling and composting bylaw which requires:

Industrial, Commercial, and Institutional (ICI) businesses to set up a collection system for recyclable and compostable materials.
Landlords to provide (or allow their occupants or tenants to have) containers of sufficient volume for the storage of recyclable and compostable materials between collections.
All occupants and tenants to separate recyclables and compostables from garbage.

To demonstrate compliance, property owners would be required to provide a proof of contract with a collection service provider to the City. The responsibility for providing proof of a collection agreement would rest with the property owner, not the tenant. Businesses renting a space would therefore not be required to submit proof directly.

The bylaw took immediate effect upon approval. However, the City has told Restaurants Canada that enforcement will initially focus on education and outreach to support compliance.

Prior to the vote, Restaurants Canada met with city officials and the Mayor’s Office to share members’ perspectives and highlight potential operational challenges for businesses. Restaurants Canada will continue to monitor as the bylaw rolls out and will keep members informed.

QUEBEC UPDATE

From Marie-Pier Richard | Vice-President, Quebec

La semaine dernière a marqué mon arrivée chez Restaurant Canada. J’ai eu la chance de pouvoir rencontrer l’équipe en personne mais aussi de faire la connaissance des membres du Conseil d’administration présents à Toronto pour l’occasion et de prendre part à l’évènement One Table.

J’ai profité de la présence de nos partenaires de l’ARQ dans la région de Québec pour faire la connaissance de Martin Vézina, Vice-président, Affaires publiques et gouvernementales et ainsi se préparer pour notre présentation commune en commission parlementaire pour les consultations sur les niveaux d’immigration qui auront lieu la semaine prochaine. Notre présentation sera le 2 octobre prochain pour ceux qui souhaiteraient la regarder. En vue de cette présentation, j’ai pris le pouls de plusieurs membres comme ici avec quelques représentants de McDonald de la capitale nationale. D’ailleurs n’hésitez pas à me contacter, il me fera plaisir d’aller à votre rencontre et de discuter des enjeux qui vous préoccupent.

Last week marked my arrival at Restaurants Canada. I had the chance to meet the team, as well as members of the Board of Directors who were in Toronto in person, and to take part in the One Table event.

I also took advantage of the presence of our partners from ARQ in the Quebec City region to meet Martin Vézina, Vice President of Public and Government Affairs, and to prepare for our joint presentation at the parliamentary committee hearings on immigration levels, which will take place next week. Our presentation will be on October 2 for those who would like to watch it.

In preparation for this presentation, I touched base with several members, including some McDonald’s representatives from the National Capital Region. Please don’t hesitate to reach out—I would be happy to meet with you and discuss the issues that matter to you.

ATLANTIC CANADA UPDATE

From Janick Cormier | Vice-President, Atlantic Canada

Last week I had the pleasure of meeting with Pizza Delight staff and franchisees from all four Atlantic provinces in Moncton. Although the summer was fantastic for business, the number one concern continues to be labour and access to immigration streams.

I was also able to discuss the New Brunswick training and matching pilot program that is being developed and hope to have a franchisee or two join the pilot when the time comes.

It is always a pleasure to meet with members and talk about what I can do to help our industry move forward!

Newfoundland and Labrador

Municipal elections are a few days away as voting day is Thursday, October 2nd. A reminder that the provincial election will be held on October 14th.

So far it seems that the Liberals and the Progressive Conservatives are neck and neck in the race. As of now, campaign commitments from both parties include measures for healthcare, affordability and public safety. I’ll continue to monitor platform commitments for anything of interest for our industry.

Of note, the NDP is promising a $22/hour minimum wage and a small business tax reduction of 1.25% for businesses with less than 100 employees.

Prince Edward Island

Last Friday, I made my way to PEI and met with a group of operators to discuss a variety of issues they are facing, including the Liquor Act modernization. I was also able to meet with TIAPEI CEO Corryn Clemence for the first time. We know that food is an integral part of the tourism product of the province and I’m looking forward to working with her towards a thriving tourism sector on the Island.

CENTRAL CANADA UPDATE

From Kris Barnier | Vice President, Central Canada and the North

Ontario

Alcohol

As shared previously, the LCBO will become our industry’s wholesaler for beer. We are engaged with the Government and the LCBO as they work to land key decisions that will impact our industry. We know the government is moving in the direction of implementing a new pricing model and we are working hard to not only protect the discounts we won on alcohol but also pushing the government to expand them. With the help of our Sub Committee on Alcohol, we are also seeking clarity from the government and LCBO on the planned transition, and to ensure that your interests are reflected in product selection, delivery, pricing, and the long-term strategy for dealing with empties.

Celebrating the Osmow’s Story

In 2001, Sam Osmow opened the very first Osmow’s restaurant in Streetsville, Ontario. Today, Osmow’s has 211 locations and proudly serves authentic Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food to many communities.

Through his hard work and great food, Sam has built an incredible legacy as a Mississauga/Ontario leader who has given many others their first job, or even their first opportunity to own a franchise business. And through their community service, the Osmow family is making a great difference in the lives of many people at home and abroad.

It was an honour to visit Sam and his son Ben Osmow, a Restaurants Canada board member, for a fantastic celebration of their success and legacy.

City of Toronto webinar series on de-escalation training

The City of Toronto is offering a free, five-part series of virtual webinars designed to provide Front Street retailers with valuable de-escalation training. Whether you’re looking to give your team a refresher on conflict resolution, learn strategies for coping with frustrated customers, or develop skills to effectively manage verbal escalations, this program equips you to stay proactive, safe, and focused on maintaining a thriving business.

With only 25 spots available per session, be sure to register early to secure your place in these informative trainings. Register here.

Manitoba

I was in Manitoba last week for a series of meetings. I met with the MRFA Board of Directors to talk about what Restaurants Canada is doing at the national level to help foodservice businesses in Manitoba and across Canada. This includes our efforts to secure a permanent removal of the GST on prepared foods, finding immediate and long-term solutions to resolve labour shortages, and public safety.

We also talked about some Manitoba focused priorities for the year ahead, including: public safety; labour shortages and workforce stability; reducing the costs of running a restaurant business; supports for businesses looking to invest in technology that improves efficiency and that helps protect jobs; and pursuing another large WCB surplus distribution that would give restaurants back a substantial portion of their annual premiums. Shaun Jeffrey of MRFA and I are working together to further build our asks of government and our corresponding GR strategy.

WESTERN CANADA UPDATE

From Mark von Schellwitz | Vice-President, Western Canada

BCGEU Strike Action Update – BC LDB Closures and Order Quantity Limits

Further to previous member updates, BCGEU continues to escalate their strike action targeting the Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) and its wholesale distribution centers. Effective September 22^nd the LDB and its head office are temporarily closed. The closure includes the Wholesale Customer Centre locations in Vancouver and Victoria, and all vendor supply chain related services.

This means that effective September 22^nd until further notice:

LDB’s liquor Distribution Centres (DCs) in Delta (DDC) and Kamloops (KDC) will not receive product, assemble, or ship orders.
Appointments at the DCs are cancelled; once they reopen, please contact DDC or KDC to reschedule.
The Liquor Wholesale Customer Centres in Vancouver and Victoria will be closed and phone calls and emails will not be answered.
- Web Store will be unavailable, and any orders that have not yet been prepared for shipment will be cancelled. Customers will be informed of the cancellation and are asked to resubmit their orders once LDB resumes operations.
- Orders submitted by email will not be entered and should be resubmitted once WCC reopens.
- Returns can be submitted but will not be processed until the LDB resumes operations.
- Customers will not be able to pick up orders at WCC Victoria or the Delta Distribution Centre.

On September 23^rd,LDB announced that effective immediately until further notice, quantity limits will be placed on all products, excluding all beer (import and domestic) and Bordeaux wines, available via BCL stores until LDB’s distribution centres resume normal operations. As a result, hospitality customers and retail customers will be limited to three items per SKU per day. This includes refreshment beverage products that come in 4-packs, 6-packs and other formats.

The rationale for the quantity limits is to protect smaller hospitality businesses that do not have the capacity to compete with larger businesses to make large purchases and LDB would like to ensure equal access to service to as many customers as possible. The implementation of quantity limits is intended to prolong the availability of liquor products for hospitality and retail customers while LDB’s distribution centres continue to be impacted by BCGEU strike action.

On September 24th Restaurants Canada was informed that BCGEU has escalated strike action even further targeting several BC Liquor stores leading to the temporary closures of the following BCLIQUOR store locations. Hospitality licensee customers will still be able to order product from those BC Liquor stores that are still open with the quantity limits mentioned above.

For more information on updates, notices, and specific details, please go to LDB’s Wholesale Operations website.

WorkSafe BC Gratuity Policy Update & Next Steps

On September 18^th WorkSafe BC CEO Anne Nasaer responded to our August 14^th joint stakeholder association letter requesting that the confusing and controversial WorkSafe Gratuity Policy be suspended and replaced. Unfortunately, WorkSafe BC has declined to suspend the policy.

We are disappointed by the response and as a next step we will be writing to the WorkSafe BC Board and Chair asking for the Board to reconsider the policy which is proving to be confusing and costly to members and which contradicts Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) direct tip policies. We are also considering taking the issue public once again.

Alberta Announces New WorkFirst Alberta Employment Initiative

During our September 8^th meeting with Alberta’s Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration Minister, the Minister reconfirmed the Alberta government’s commitment to reducing unemployment and helping businesses provide more job opportunities. On September 16^th the Alberta government announced the WorkFirst Alberta initiative to help job seekers find meaningful work and support employers in building a skilled workforce. New WorkFirst employment services will make it easier for Albertans to access workshops, reskilling opportunities and career supports, while giving employers more tools to find and retain talent. Interested members can enrol here.

The WorkFirst initiative is the latest in a series of employment development programs announced by the Alberta government recently, including the Youth Employment Incentive, and the new Canada-Alberta Productivity Grant. These new employment programs are funded by the $185 million career and employment program funding commitment included in Budget 2025.

Alberta Ad Valorem Wine Markup Update

Restaurants Canada continues to advocate for changes to the ad valorem liquor markups announced in Alberta’s 2025 budget which add an additional 5% markup on wines from $15/litre to $20/litre, 10% on wines between $20/litre and $25/litre, and 15% to wines over $25/litre effective April 1st. After a couple of informal meetings with Minister Nally and following the June AGLC Liquor Stakeholders meeting Restaurants Canada wrote a follow up letter to the Minister on the issue. We pointed out that numerous other liquor stakeholders also voiced concerns and requested a formal meeting to discuss alternatives to the new mark up.

In July, Restaurants Canada collaborated with other impacted associations, including the Alberta Hospitality Association (AHA), the Import Vinters and Spirits Association (IVSA), Wine Growers Canada, and the Alberta Liquor Store Association (ALSA), on a joint stakeholder association letter to the Minister. We reiterated the need to meet to discuss rescinding the ad valorem wine markup and replacing it with a smaller flat tax mark up on all liquor products to meet the government’s liquor revenue needs.

Finally, on September 25^th Restaurants Canada and other impacted stakeholder associations met with the Minister Nally’s office and Service Alberta officials to discuss the Ad Valorem Wine markup. Restaurants Canada and the participating associations were disappointed with the government’s response to our concerns and are interested in ramping up public pressure on the government to rescind the unfair tax which is adding to Alberta’s affordability crisis and significantly increasing wine costs at a time when Alberta licensed restaurants can least afford it.

Reminder – Canada- Alberta Productivity Grant (CAPG) Applications

For those members interested in submitting applications for the Canada-Alberta Productivity Grant the CAPG portal is now open for application intake.

How to apply:

Visit the CAPG website: www.alberta.ca/CAPG
Ensure you have an updated Alberta.ca Account for Organizations
Login and register your business: Canada-Alberta Productivity Grant Portal.
Wait for business registration approval
Business approval will take 3-5 business days. An application for training cannot be submitted until the business registration is approved.
Go to CAPG grant portal and submit an application.

For more information on the program visit: www.alberta.ca/CAPG. Additional questions can be directed to jobgrant@gov.ab.ca.

Reminder – Saskatchewan Minimum Wage Increases October 1^st

Saskatchewan members are reminded that on October 1^st Saskatchewan’s minimum wage will increase from $15 per hour to $15.35, as announced by the Deputy Premier and Labour Relations and Workplace Safety Minister. The announcement confirmed that Saskatchewan was returning to their objective minimum wage implementation formula, which gives equal weight to CPI and the previous year’s Average Hourly Wage increase after a couple of years of subjective catch up minimum wage increases.

Restaurants Canada will continue to advocate that the indexation formula be maintained in future minimum wage adjustments.

With gratitude,