‘We’ve never seen this before’: Consumers looking to the labels to buy local

Clearer labels and eye-catching signage are making it easier to spot Canadian-made products.

From “Buy Local” signage to Nova Scotian flags, labelling is everything for grocery stores these days.

“A lot of our customers are very conscious of their purchases, so they are looking for items that come from Halifax or Atlantic Canada or Canada,” says Claude Moulaison, the general manager at Arthur’s Urban Market in downtown Halifax.

Grocery stores have begun to use signage to indicate where an item is from, explaining the difference between 100 per cent Canadian, a product of Canada, and made-in-Canada.

“Things have gotten way more nationalistic at the grocery store,” says Sylvain Charlebois, the head of Dalhousie University’s Agri-Foods Lab.

Charlebois says the move is being driven by consumer demand and the numbers show Canadians are buying fewer American products.

“Sales for made in Canada products, products of Canada are up 3.5 per cent in February for sales. American products are down 6.5 per cent in a month. That is huge, we’ve never seen this before.”

One common item that customers seem to be avoiding is orange juice, at least the brand that comes from the United States.

“Most juices that are sold in Canada are from Brazil except for one, there’s one exception and that’s Tropicana, it’s 50-50. It’s 50 per cent Brazilian, 50 per cent American,” Charlebois says.

“Orange juice is a big deal for a lot of Canadians and when they thought about boycotting America, they thought about oranges.”

“I feel like it’s important to support Canadian manufacturers right now especially. Mind you I have always tried to buy Canadian, but I’m trying a little harder right now,” adds consumer, Jody Waugh.

Price of course matters, but Claude Moulaison says customers are willing to pay a little more for an item not from the U.S.

“Even if it’s 30 cents more or whatever, they know it’s a more quality item and it comes from their homeland in Canada. They’re not necessarily keen on purchasing the American products.”

Clearer labelling is making it much easier for consumers to distinguish where a product is from and if it makes it into their cart.

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