Ottawa shoppers eager to buy Canadian groceries amid U.S. trade war

Nathan Fung · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 06, 2025 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: March 6

At Ottawa market stores, user choler toward U.S. President Donald Trump is sending shoppers successful hunt of Canadian products.

After 25 per cent tariffs connected astir each Canadian goods went into effect Tuesday, some Ottawa residents are translating that choler into paying other attraction successful the market aisles.

At the aforesaid time, immoderate Ottawa market stores are already shifting their purchases away from U.S. stock.

Shopper Bonny Jordan said she's present buying cabbage and carrots to marque her ain coleslaw alternatively of buying it pre-packaged.

"I volition surely debar thing American if possible," Jordan said, arsenic she was leaving Costco.

Allan Bacon, who was leaving Food Basics, besides said helium volition beryllium much selective successful what helium buys. He added that he grew up successful England during the Second World War and believes Canada volition marque it done the challenging situation.

"When the radical are faced with uncertainty and serious problems arsenic we are, we thin to travel unneurotic and get done it," helium said.

Some retailers adapt

Meanwhile, immoderate Ottawa retailers are besides adapting to the concern by focusing connected Canadian stock.

Marilyn Dib, operations manager astatine Cedars & Co. Food Market, said her store has stocked up on Canadian products. She said the store had already reduced its banal of American products owed to the pandemic, from 50 per cent to 20 per cent.

"I would similar to fundamentally halt each USA merchandise from coming into our store truthful that we bash not person to bash this further hard enactment of having to woody with tariffs," she said.

One shopper bought a ample information of the store's U.S.-sourced dry goods to donate to the nutrient bank, she added.

She besides welcomes imaginable measures to statement Canadian-made products, thing Premier Doug Ford said helium volition see legislating.

But she does interest whether Canadian proviso tin lucifer demand.

Avoiding American not always easy

Hassan Al-Husseini, proprietor of Mangosteen Grocery and Fruits Express, said astir 60 per cent of his store's banal comes from the U.S.

Al-Husseini said his store has been looking astatine getting merchandise from different sources, but some items volition beryllium hard to root from anywhere but the U.S. He said it's impractical to source some items similar greenish peppers oregon lettuce from elsewhere.

"It's precise hard to get from antithetic countries conscionable due to the fact that these items doesn't person a agelong similar support life," helium said.

Al-Husseini said erstwhile prices bash spell up, it volition yet beryllium the user who pays for it.

"Me arsenic a businessman, we people up 20 percent, 10 per cent on the item. We're inactive going to people this to wage our bills, to wage our rent, but the lone idiosyncratic going to get deed is simply a consumer," helium said.