As Canada anticipates being hit with 25% tariffs on most products imported into the US, some major Canadian grocers are pledging to promote homemade goods to fight back.
Late Monday afternoon, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that after a phone call with US President Donald Trump, the proposed tariffs will be paused for at least 30 days.
I just had a good call with President Trump. Canada is implementing our $1.3 billion border plan — reinforcing the border with new choppers, technology and personnel, enhanced coordination with our American partners, and increased resources to stop the flow of fentanyl. Nearly…
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) February 3, 2025
Still, grocers are already preparing for a possible tariff war.
In an email to Daily Hive on Monday, Empire Company Limited — the conglomerate that owns grocers like Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, FreshCo and Foodland — says it already has a “robust strategy” to combat US President Donald Trump’s looming tariffs.
“Empire Company Limited is focused on protecting our customers as much as possible from the impacts of this unwarranted action from the United States and the necessary reaction from our federal and provincial governments,” reads a statement from Empire Company spokesperson Sarah Dawson.
BalkansCat/Shutterstock
Dawson says the company already favours and displays local products in its stores nationwide. She says it’s working to amplify this practice while accelerating the sourcing of Canadian goods as alternatives to products on Ottawa’s retaliatory tariffs list.
“We will be using all of our communication channels, including in-store, to clearly identify Canadian products and give them greater prominence,” she stated.
“We encourage all of our customers to make informed purchasing decisions with the information in our displays and the country-of-origin information printed on packaging and labels.”
Metro Inc., which owns Ontario and Quebec grocers like Food Basics and Super C, told Daily Hive over email that it’ll beef up its promotion of made-in-Canada goods given the circumstances.
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“We’ll be working to optimize the visibility of local products – in-store, online and on our various promotional tools like the weekly flyer – to make them easier to find for customers who want to prioritize them,” said Metro spokesperson Stephanie Bonk.
She added that the retailer has been identifying and promoting Canadian products in its stores for many years through Metro’s Locally Sourced program and Food Basics’ We Love Local program.
“When it comes to procurement, we already give priority to local Canadian products whenever possible,” said Bonk.
Loblaw and Walmart have yet to respond to Daily Hive’s request for comment.
Over the weekend, Trump announced that the tariffs, which will kick in on Tuesday, will charge 25% on most Canadian products imported into the US, with the exception of energy, which will be subject to a 10% tariff.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded with 25% tariffs on $155 billion worth of US goods.
The first phase of the response will include tariffs on $30 billion in goods imported from the US, effective February 4, when the US tariffs are implemented.
The list of US goods includes orange juice, peanut butter, wine, spirits, beer, coffee, appliances, apparel, footwear, motorcycles, cosmetics, and more.
People online are already sharing photos of Canadian stores putting “Made in Canada” labels on price tags and “Buy Canadian Instead” signs next to products. Although, it’s not clear if those signs were implemented in light of the tariffs.
“Buy Canadian Instead” signs going up in BC Liquor stores pic.twitter.com/FjgGqKViUO
— Riley Donovan (@valdombre) February 2, 2025
Canadians online are urging retailers to add “Canadian-made” symbols to goods to help those who want to boycott US products during the tariff war make informed decisions. There’s even a petition asking grocery stores to add these labels.
There are already plenty of threads on Reddit and X guiding Canadians on how to shop locally.