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[–] 52 points 10 months ago (17 children)

What the hell are we buying in EU? It would never cross my mind to by American alcohol.

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  • [–] 30 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (8 children)

    I discovered that Smirnoff sold in the EU is American. I'm sure there are others.

    I can confidently say I can't remember the last time I bought American alcohol but also that number is actually very low. Way less than one dollar per person per quarter.

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  • [–] 18 points 10 months ago (7 children)

    A British company that manufactures in various countries.

    My Canadian liquor store told me it was Canadian.

    This is a reminder to me to fact check.

    Smirnoff is currently manufactured in the following countries:

    • Argentina
    • Australia
    • Brazil
    • Canada
    • Great Britain
    • Italy
    • Jamaica
    • Kenya
    • India
    • Indonesia
    • United States
    • El Salvador
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  • [–] 19 points 10 months ago (6 children)

    The question isn't where it is manufactured. It's where the money flows on sale.

    For example "Canadian" French's ketchup is made with tomatoes sourced in Canada. But the money flows to McCormick's, an American company.

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  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Yep, that's why we switched to Kozlik's mustard and I now make my own ketchup. Etc or et el or whatever

    And as for a vodka, I'll switch to a local distillery. I don't drink enough to worry about the slightly higher price. Should have done that in the first place.

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  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Geez. Any good sites out there to track this? Hard to navigate the tendrils...

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  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago

    I've heard of apps like Buy Canadian or Buy Beaver but can't vouch for any since where I live this is largely irrelevant. What I specifically can't vouch for is whether they track ownership (i.e. where the money flows) or only material sourcing (i.e. where the labour gets exploited).

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  • [–] 14 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (4 children)

    The US is a massive producer of wines and exported over 200 million liters in 2024.

    According to data analysis, the three countries most dependent on the US market for their wine exports—based on the percentage of total export value directed to the US in comparison to their overall wine export value in 2024—are Italy with 24.5%, France with 20.7% and Greece with 19.4%.>

    Then you have beer, bourbon, Smirnoff (as mentioned by other comments)

    >The EU remains the dominant market for U.S. spirits, accounting for approximately 50% of all exports at $1.2 billion. The top five export markets in 2024 were: the European Union ($1.2 billion), Canada ($221 million), the United Kingdom ($137 million), Australia ($131 million), and Mexico ($126 million).>

    I wish they produced worse wines because that's my personal trap.

    • The second quote was referring to imports not exports. Sorry for that.

    Can't fish out the text but here is a shoddy picture to show the importsPicture of EU imports of Wine from the US in percentage of total value from 2018 to 2024

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  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    I’m a bit surprised Italy and France are such big importers of wine. One would think they produce so much wine, they would consume their own.

    I will say California wines are amazing. IMO usually better than French or Italian wines. But maybe I am biased being Californian and having so much exposure to great local wines.

    Maybe we can secede the union and the world can enjoy our wines again 😢

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago

    I will say California wines are amazing. IMO usually better than French or Italian wines.

    I’m a bit surprised Italy and France are such big importers of wine. One would think they produce so much wine, they would consume their own.

    It's export wine selling on the prestige of the country. They want California wine as much as everyone else.

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  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago

    I know Trumpists, who tried their best to "offset the losses caused by communist boycotts".

    Boycotts are often called "communist" in the former Soviet bloc by right wingers, who had to change the tone of their critique of communism. Out with the arrest quotas, out with the secret police, out with the forced labor camps, welcome to crying middle aged women complaining how they couldn't buy Adidas shoes under communism as a child. This started so seep into "the west" thanks to the popularity of the Orbán regime with post-fascists. The reality was much more complicated, while sometimes western products were "banned" (they couldn't be imported, but the ownership of theirs were loosely enforced if that was also banned), other times the west also refused to sell their products there. Also sometimes it was easy to skirt around such bans, in diplomat shops, all you needed is some foreign currency ,which was provided by the likes of the Hungarian corporation Novotrade, as they needed to exchange the dollars they got from the west to forint to pay their gamedevs.

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  • [–] 16 points 10 months ago

    GO, Canada!
    Our spirits you've denied!

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  • [–] [S] 30 points 10 months ago (4 children)

    The 9.6m is Alberta and Saskatchewan compromising our defences.

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  • [–] 12 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    Maybe worth noting that Canada imposed a reciprocal 25% tariff on US spirits, while (AFAIK) the EU's reciprocal tariffs were only on steel & aluminum. Canadians may be individually 'elbows up,' but their government is backing that sentiment better than Europe. That reciprocal tariff really helps identify the source of products.

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  • [–] 7 points 10 months ago (2 children)

    I was a big fan of those.

    Safeway was like "Geeze, we can't afford to sell Bicks pickles anymore due to the teriffs" and I was just "sweet, thanks for making it super easy to know exactly what thing I'll never buy again for the rest of my fucking life"

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  • [–] 14 points 10 months ago

    Canada, fuck yeah! Coming to save the motherfucking day yeah!

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  • [–] 12 points 10 months ago* (2 children)

    It’s sad knowing that Trump has caused long term damage to our world standing.

    Even if by some miracle we elect a democrat in 2028, don’t expect world-wide anti-American sentiment to change much. We have proven we can’t be trusted. Also I fear that the amount of damage Trump is causing in other areas will be too much for the next dem to be able to clean up. We won’t have another Clinton, Obama or Biden situation.

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago*

    It’s sad knowing that Trump has caused long term damage to our world standing.

    It's not just Trump. This is also years of American Exceptionalism coming home to roost.

    Also I fear that the amount of damage Trump is causing in other areas will be too much for the next dem to be able to clean up.

    I don't think you'll ever see your old government again. Trump is going to severely break it, the Christian Nationalist will take over when they nuke Trump in the mid terms (my guess, they'll kill him and blame the left) and that will be the end of that. Maybe in a few years you'll have a civil war and the states will break up. I mean, that's Putin's goal right?

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    [–] 22 points 10 months ago (1 child)
  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Yeah but you got to admit, us Canadians are going hard on the boycott.

    It might be because we have observed the US from a close distance and understand them better.

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  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago

    FYI, here is the article that the graph is from. It includes some other data too, on dropping travel to the US and reduced orange juice imports.

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  • [–] 9 points 10 months ago
    [–] 8 points 10 months ago

    I check each bottle of booze I buy to make sure it is not amerikan. I am not supporting my enemy.

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  • [–] 13 points 10 months ago (2 children)

    Cowardly Europeans need to step it up.

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago (4 children)

    This would indicate an overwhelming support for the boycott, but that is misleading. Probably most Canadians, such as myself, get their liquor from government-run liquor stores such at BC Liquor or LCBO. These stores have stopped stocking USian liquor in response to the tariffs.

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  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago (1 child)

    So that paints the other countries in a better light. Here in the UK it'll just be down to individuals choosing not to buy. It's still on the shelves.

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  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago

    I suppose so, but even if American liquors were in stock, there would still be a boycott in Canada. So it's hard to say what % it would be here, but presumably at least as much boycotting as elsewhere.

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  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    👏👏👏

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  • [–] 11 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    If people are wondering why the EU columns are so tall, it's because Europe is 27 countries, not one like USians seem to believe.

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  • [–] 4 points 10 months ago
    [–] 4 points 10 months ago

    I'd like to say I have contributed to this change, but I've been drinking local microbrewery beer since before Trump got elected the first time.

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  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    Keep up EU, you guys make excellent alcohol, beer and wine.

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  • [–] -1 points 10 months ago

    Won't someone please think about the alcohol companies. They're so so so poor

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