Is it Canadian? Shoppers want to buy local but it’s not always easy

With all of the talk of tariffs and annexation, more Quebecers are interested in buying local, but knowing where a product is coming from isn’t always easy.

It sometimes takes doing some research before heading to the grocery store.

At Esposito’s in Montreal’s Côte-Des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-De-Grâce borough, staff are getting used to searching product labels to find out where they come from.

“Usually, the customers don’t ask but now they’re asking,” said assistant manager Normand Shannon.

Shannon says since U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats, more customers want to buy local and avoid American products.

• Federal government hosts Canada-U.S. economic summit during tariff threat pause

“It’s something we do anyways. So, it’s not much of a change. But yeah, I mean, definitely with the impending sanctions it’s been on my mind for sure,” one customer told CTV News.

“With the current American politics, you know, you’re a bit obligated to [buy] a bit more Canadian,” another one said.

• Canadian egg prices safe from skyrocketing seen in U.S., experts say

Shannon says it’s a change grocery stores are adapting to quickly.

“They want to know where it’s from. They’re fussy. They ask us what we’re going to do with the American products,” he said.

“If they’re not selling, we’re not going to keep them but sometimes we have no choice.”

Generally speaking, if a product is in a package or has a sticker it will say where it’s from.

If it’s a local product, it will usually have a maple leaf or say “Product of Quebec.”

But it’s not always easy to know. For example, a jug of Simply orange juice says it’s bottled in Canada, but do a little bit of research on the company and it’s not actually produced here.

A new website — isthiscanadian.ca — is an online tool developed in Quebec that uses artificial intelligence to give you an idea of how Canadian a product is.

In the case of the orange juice, while bottled in Canada, the ingredients are imported and the profit flows back to the United States.

It’s a new reality for shoppers trying to spend their dollars locally.