Canada Shops Ordered To Stop Labeling West Bank Wines ‘Made In Israel’
Image by Getty Images
(JTA) — The Liquor Control Board of Ontario, Canada has ordered wine vendors to stop selling wines labeled as “Product of Israel” if they are manufactured in the West Bank.
A letter sent on Tuesday from the Liquor Control Board of Ontario to liquor vendors singles out the Psagot and Shiloh wineries, located in the Ramallah area of the West Bank. The vendors are asked to remove the wine from their shelves and to discontinue importing them.
The board in its letter cites a July 6 ruling by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, or CFIA, which said that “‘Product of Israel’ would not be an acceptable country of origin declaration for wine products that have been made from grapes that are grown, fermented, processed, blended and finished in the West Bank occupied territory.”
The board said it was working with CFIA to ensure compliance with the ruling. The letter added that: “We are currently seeking clarifications from the CFIA on how such wines should be labeled in order to comply with the Food and Drugs Act.”
The Jewish advocacy group B’nai Brith Canada said in a statement issued Wednesday that it expects the CFIA “will soon rescind its recent decision to order the removal of certain Israeli wines from store shelves.”
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
