Alcohol Retailing in Canadian and Nordic Contexts: Challenges and Opportunities in Balancing Trade and Prevention Agendas

Abstract

This article involves a comparison of the Nordic alcohol-monopoly countries with Canadian provinces that have a tradition of off-premise alcohol retail monopolies. The aim of the article is to shed light on recent developments in Canadian and Nordic alcohol-retailing systems, and to propose a way forward for alcohol-control policy that involves balancing alcohol trade and damage-reduction agendas. The article first considers developments over the past three decades in alcohol production, marketing, and retailing involving a concentration of production, and an expansion and increased sophistication of alcohol marketing and retailing, and the underlying international and national pressures. Next, it examines examples of recent alcohol policy making in Canada and the Nordic countries, noting the challenges of controlling total alcohol consumption and high-risk drinking in a market-oriented environment. Third, it offers several steps forward that will facilitate a better balance of alcohol trade and problem-prevention agendas in the context of off-premise alcohol-retail-control systems.