Many Canadians were committed to boycotting Loblaw Companies Limited stores across the country in May in protest of rising grocery prices. Today, thousands are continuing until their demands are met.
The protest was started by Emily Johnson, a social worker who was fed up with exorbitant grocery prices, decreasing food quality and the grocery chain’s contribution to the cost-of-living crisis faced by Canadians. “Loblaw, out of the Big 5 grocers, has the largest market share,” said Johnson in an interview with CBC News. “Our community felt that it was not the only problem, but definitely the biggest one.”
The boycott’s demands are for Loblaw to sign the grocery code of conduct, a voluntary set of guidelines set to improve relationships between big grocers and their suppliers.
The code of conduct is meant to regulate the Big 5 grocers, which are Loblaw, Sobeys, Metro, Costco and Walmart. Other demands are to stop retailer-led price increases and increasing dividends to increase cost transparency, along with to put a price cap on “essential” items to end “price gouging.”
While Loblaw has signed the grocery code of conduct, Johnson said herself and many others will continue their boycott until all the demands are met.
Most recently, Loblaw increased their dividend by 15 per cent, directly contradicting one of the demands of the boycott group.
The boycott almost immediately gained traction online on the “loblawsisoutofcontrol” Reddit forum, where thousands of Canadians took the opportunity to share their issues with the Canadian retail giant.
Loblaw reached out to Johnson in May and set up a time for her to speak with Per Bank, Loblaw’s CEO. “We talked a lot about our biggest concerns, cost issues, food security issues and about hoping for bigger industry changes,” said Johnson about her meeting with Bank on CTVNews. “I see Per Bank as a maverick and as a change-maker.”
On campus, students have been feeling the effects of the rising cost of living since the pandemic.
Karly Rath, the volunteer and community engagement director for the Laurier Students’ Public Interest Research Group (LSPIRG) started the Distro program, a food bank specifically for Laurier students experiencing any level of food insecurity.
The group is run by LSPIRG and Luther and was established to combat food insecurity in October, 2020.
Today, the Distro serves up to 205 students per week. According to a survey taken this past winter by LSPIRG, one in five students who accessed the Distro received all the food they eat in a week from the program.
I imagine that it’s over 50 per cent of students that are now food insecure.
-Karly Rath, volunteer and community engagement director
According to Food4Hawks, a study on food insecurity at Wilfrid Laurier University published in 2020, 47 per cent of students were food insecure to some extent at the time and 23 per cent were severely food insecure.
“I imagine that it’s over 50 per cent of students that are now food insecure,” said Rath on the growing number of students experiencing food insecurity today.
The increase is largely attributed to the rising cost of living faced by students. “Part of challenging the Big 5 grocers should include creating and supporting our alternative food systems and fostering food sovereignty,” said Rath.
“The incredible exploitation that’s happening in our community locally and beyond is harming our students and greatly impacting their access to food.”
