Ontario Premier pours whisky in protest: Doug Ford attacks Diageo over plant closure; watch

Ontario Premier Doug Ford on Tuesday, poured out a bottle of Crown Royal whisky in Kitchener, Canada, accusing its maker Diageo of abandoning Ontario workers. “You hurt my people, I hurt you,” Ford said, urging residents to buy locally made whisky instead. The protest came after Diageo announced it will close its Amherstburg, Ontario, bottling plant in early 2026 and shift work to the United States. The move will cut 207 unionised jobs. Ford called the decision “shortsighted” and said the company earned $740 million a year in Ontario while paying only $16–17 million in local salaries.

Union members cheered Ford’s stand. “This is how you fight a trade war,” said Lana Payne, president of Unifor.

She accused Diageo of failing to inform workers before announcing the closure and warned the company will have to face the union “the easy way, or the hard way.” Ford said Ontario is Diageo’s “biggest and best customer” and criticised the company’s management. “You guys are about as dumb as a bag of hammers for doing this,” he said. Diageo defended its decision, saying Crown Royal will continue to be mashed, distilled, blended, and aged in Canada. “We did not take this decision lightly,” the company said in a statement, adding it recognises the impact on employees but the closure is final.