Amherstburg’s Crown Royal Bottling Plant To Close, Diageo Announces

The company behind Amherstburg’s iconic Crown Royal bottling plant has announced its closure for early next year.

In a statement released by Diageo PLC, they say the bottling facility in Amherstburg will close by February 2026 due to “an ongoing commitment to increase the efficiency and resiliency of its manufacturing footprint.”

“We appreciate our dedicated Amherstburg employees for their contributions to Diageo and the Crown Royal brand,” said Marsha McIntosh, Diageo’s President of North America Supply, in a statement. “This was a difficult decision, but one that is crucial to improving the efficiency and resiliency of our supply chain network.”

“All Crown Royal will be mashed, distilled, and aged at our Canadian facilities, just as it has been for nearly a century,” McIntosh said. “It will continue to be the great whisky our consumers know and love. We are committed to continuing our support for the community during this transition.”

The Amherstburg plant is one of Diageo’s facilities that bottles Crown Royal products. The company says they will will maintain their presence in Canada, including at their Canadian headquarters and warehouse operations in the Greater Toronto Area and other bottling and distillation facilities in Gimli, Manitoba and Valleyfield, Quebec. They say Crown Royal whisky destined for Canada and non-U.S. export markets will continue to be bottled in Canada, at Diageo’s Valleyfield, Quebec facility.

“This decision reflects Diageo’s efforts to continuously improve its North American supply chain and ensure the company is best positioned for long-term sustainable growth,” the statement reads. “Through this process, the company will unlock additional productivity and increase resiliency and capacity to scale, effectively meeting demand across its markets and shifting some bottling volume to be closer to its many U.S. Crown Royal consumers. These changes are consistent with the strategic priorities in Diageo’s global Accelerate program, which sets out clear cash delivery targets and a disciplined approach to operational excellence and cost efficiency for the company.”

The company says they’ll work to “support impacted employees through this transition and will work alongside Unifor to provide assistance for its unionized employees.”