Ford says potential buyers eyeing Amherstburg Crown Royal facility

Premier Doug Ford has confirmed three new companies are interested in taking over the Amherstburg Crown Royal factory.

The Premier of Ontario says there is interest from other companies in purchasing the Amherstburg Diageo facility.

During a media scrum on Tuesday, Doug Ford stated that he hasn’t spoken to Diageo but says the good news is three companies have expressed interest in the Amherstburg facility and taking on its employees.

It was not stated who those three companies are.

Diageo announced in August that it was closing the plant which bottles Crown Royal whisky in February 2026.

The company had stated they were closing the plant in order to “streamline its North American supply chain.”

Ford has been very open about his frustrations with this closure — he dumped out a bottle of Crown Royal during a news conference in early September, and then threatened over the weekend to remove Diageo products from the LCBO shelves.

Diageo also owns dozens of other well-known brands, including Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Baileys, Smirnoff and Captain Morgan.

Unifor Local 200, which represents approximately 200 employees at the Amherstburg plant, has a meeting scheduled with the company in November.