Yes, high inflation has affected everyone along the fresh produce supply chain, from the grower to the supermarket shopper.
The Canadian Produce Marketing Association recognizes the federal government’s attempt to alleviate the impact of rising food prices in Canada, announced Oct. 5.
Under political pressure to tackle high inflation, the Canadian government said the country's five major grocery chains — Metro, Loblaws, Sobeys, Walmart and Costco, representing 80% of the country’s grocery market sector — had made an initial commitment to help stabilize food prices, according to Reuters. In September, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that Canada could impose new taxes on the chains if they didn’t create a feasible plan to limit the rise of food prices.
While CPMA said it supports improved data collection and the development of a Grocery Code of Conduct, the association has “significant concerns” with other elements of the proposed strategy including potential discounts, price freezes, price matching and the development of a Grocery Task Force, according to a news release.
“Implementation of discounts, price freezes and price-matching campaigns, without considering full supply chain impacts, will not help in lowering food prices and will add more financial burden throughout the domestic and global supply chain including fresh produce growers who are already struggling under significant increases to production costs,” the CPMA release said.
The inflationary pressures Canadians are facing are also being felt around the world, and this is due to the increase in the costs of production of fruits and vegetables, according to a report released by the Global Coalition of Fresh Produce comprising fresh produce associations, including CPMA.
Related: CPMA releases Canadian Customer Report
The association also questions how well the proposed Grocery Task Force would be able to support consumer advocacy. CPMA said it recognizes the efforts of existing groups within the Canadian marketplace supporting consumer interests; duplication of these efforts and adding more costs to a burdened supply chain must be considered before institutionalizing a new structure.
“The federal strategy has some gaps, and the produce supply chain partners have not been consulted. If produce is included in any price-freeze model, it will impact the flow and availability of produce in Canada,” CPMA President Ron Lemaire said in the release. “We are a global food system, and a full food supply chain approach is necessary to address food prices, as well as federal government’s multiple policies, which have added to the end cost to Canadians.”
CPMA appreciates and supports two parts to this movement to curb price inflation, according to the release:
- The association appreciates that the government recognizes industry efforts to develop and implement a Grocery Code of Conduct. Federal funding is necessary to launch this tool that will support fairness and transparency across the industry, the release said. This necessary industry tool is a long-term solution that will support companies in efforts to sell and market grocery items in Canada.
- CPMA supports building a database to access information on food prices and cost breakdowns to enable the government to make informed food policy decisions.
CPMA said it will continue collaborating with its members and partners from Canada and around the world to address issues that impact Canadians’ access to food.