The federal government is demanding major Canadian grocers come up with a plan to stabilize prices, drawing pushback from the food industry.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday said the call comes as Canadians continue to struggle with inflation.
“Large grocery chains are making record profits. Those profits should not be made on the backs of people who are struggling to feed their families,” he said, speaking in London, Ont., following a caucus retreat.
He said the government will be asking the five largest grocery companies including Loblaw, Metro, Empire, Walmart and Costco to come up with a plan by Thanksgiving.
“If their plan doesn’t provide real relief for the middle class and people working hard to join it, then we will take further action and we are not ruling anything out including tax measures.”
The call comes as grocery prices rose 8.5 per cent in July, showing a slight easing of price growth but still running much hotter than overall inflation.
Major grocers have been facing accusations of profiteering amid high inflation, though executives from Loblaw, Metro and Empire denied these allegations before a parliamentary committee studying food inflation earlier this year.
The Retail Council of Canada said in a statement Thursday that grocer prices and profits have nothing to do with rising food prices, pointing instead to higher costs being passed on from food manufacturers and producers.
The group said that any discussions on food pricing need to also include processors, manufacturers and other relevant businesses in the supply chain.
“We are not going to take part in discussions that time and time again fail to look below the surface as to the true cause of rising grocery prices.”
Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, who is taking the lead on the grocery price push, said at Thursday’s press conference that the government would also be engaging other segments of the food industry.
“We’re going to start with the five largest grocers in Canada represent about 80 per cent of the market, and we’re going to be in solution mode with very clear deadlines and very clear outcomes for Canadians. And together we’re going to look also at large food processors,” he said.
“We’re going to bring them in Ottawa, talk to them around meaningful action and if they fail to do so there’ll be consequences.”
Anthony Fuchs, spokesman for the Food, Health & Consumer Products of Canada, which represents food producers, said in a statement that both the timing of the announcement and the threat of tax measures was concerning.
“We believe that using taxation as a punitive measure on retailers, especially at this time, is not only ill-advised but might have a detrimental ripple effect on the whole food supply chain, including food producers,” said Fuchs.
“Today’s announcement, which proposed a broad approach to a nuanced issue, may lead to unintended consequences.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2023.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
