The SAQ’s price hikes go into effect on Sunday

Prices will rise an average of 3.7 per cent on 2,550 products. But prices will drop on some products.

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For the second time in a little over six months, the Société des alcools du Québec has announced a price hike, this time by an average of 3.7 per cent on 2,550 products.

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The increase goes into effect Sunday, May 22, on most products, although 80 of them will not see their prices increased until July 17.

Among specialty products offered mainly in the SAQ’s Espace Cellier1,328 will see their prices increase on Sunday by 3.3 per cent, while prices on 157 others will be reduced by 2.6 per cent.

The SAQ said prices on 182 other products will be reduced by an average of 2.1 per cent, while the prices of 606 other products will remain unchanged.

Last November, the SAQ announced it would raise prices on 1,332 products an average of 1.66 per cent, most of them in the days following the announcement, although the prices on 50 of those products did not increase until last January.

The SAQ said in a statement the price increase was due to the disruption of the worldwide supply chain, the exceptional increase in the costs of maritime transport and the increase in production costs for suppliers.

The increase in production costs include a shortage of bottles, corks, labels and labour. Poor weather conditions in 2021 affected the availability of certain products from regions including Beaujolais, Burgundy and the Loire.

The SAQ used similar arguments to justify November’s price hike.

The Crown corporation noted that last April, the federal government increased the excise duty on alcoholic beverages by 2.4 per cent.