Deal reached to allow grocers to avoid accepting beer and wine empties

TORONTO - Ontario grocers and The Beer Store have reached an agreement-in-principle on alcohol recycling that will allow the retailers to avoid collecting empties at their stores and gives a renewed role to the brewers, The Canadian Press has learned.

The deal averts a potential death knell for the Ontario Deposit Return Program, as some grocers warned they would refuse to accept empties as required starting Jan. 1, the same day The Beer Store is allowed to close an unlimited number of locations.