Food inflation | We blame the grocers a little less, according to a survey

Grocery chains arouse less suspicion among consumers when asked why their grocery bill is higher, suggests a report to be released on Tuesday by Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytical Sciences Laboratory. Quebec stands out in this regard, according to the sounding. However, grocers still have work to do to improve their image. Overview of the main conclusions.

30.3%

About three in ten respondents blame grocers for rising food prices. The director of the laboratory, Sylvain Charlebois, is “pleasantly surprised” by the result, since a similar proportion of people surveyed (29.9%) believe that monetary policies are to blame. “So that means that Canadians seem to be aware that this is a global problem,” says Mr. Charlebois. We seem to have taken the time to better understand what this means. I didn’t expect the results to be so tight. »

21.8%

It is in Quebec that we find the smallest proportion of consumers who believe that “the abuse of food chains” “is the main reason” for inflationary surges. Difficult to say what explains this result, says Mr. Charlebois. According to him, the sensitivity of Quebec consumers to prices is not as great as in Ontario, for example. Moreover, the province has not seen a political party seize the theme of food inflation to make it its spearhead. “Quebec has benefited from not being too exposed to the New Democratic Party (NDP) campaign in Ottawa,” says Mr. Charlebois. The message had less resonance in Quebec. »

32.9%

The survey paints a less than rosy picture of the passage of the big bosses of the main food chains in the country (Metro, Loblaw and Empire / IGA) in parliamentary committee, in Ottawa, last month. Less than a third of respondents say they have been convinced and the majority are “skeptical”. In front of parliamentarians, these leaders had essentially repeated the same speech: the rise in food prices is attributable to a panoply of factors over which they have little control. “The format of the exercise complicated the task for the witnesses,” says the director of the Laboratory. In just over an hour, it’s hard to change anything. Food inflation had been politicized. It was not easy to justify himself. »

68.1%

The entry of a code of conduct – which would frame business practices between private companies – could boost grocers’ ratings, the survey suggests. Some 70% of respondents said they were in favor of setting up a food industry watchdog. “I think it’s a point of reconciliation,” said Mr. Charlebois. We perceive the code as an interesting tool. I’m not sure everyone is convinced yet, but it’s a step. I didn’t expect so much support. In Quebec, 67% of respondents were in favor of the code of conduct in the food industry.