Loblaw Companies Ltd. has announced a reversal of its earlier decision to end the 50 percent discount on food products nearing their best-before dates.
The change applied to its various grocery stores, including Loblaws, No Frills, Valu-Mart, Your Independent Grocer, and Zehrs. Loblaw explained that the move aims to create a more uniform and predictable pricing strategy, aligning with practices of its market competitors.
“We’ve listened to the feedback from our customers and colleagues and are reverting [where it existed before] to the 50 percent off discounts,” said the company.
“In the Atlantic, we had not implemented the change and will not. In the rest of the country, customers can expect to see 50 percent stickers returning in the next few weeks.”
The cost of groceries has had a major impact on Canadians’ wallets over the past two years, thanks to food inflation. Prices are expected to continue to rise this year, although not as much as in 2023.
According to the report, 43.3 percent of Canadians plan to focus on promotional offers to manage higher food costs, while 10.4 percent plan to increase online food purchases.
Over a third of Canadians plan to eat out less often (38.3 percent) and 12.2 percent intend not to eat out at all in 2024.
Those who dine out will choose budget-friendly options (39.4 percent), avoid side dishes or alcohol (24.2 percent), and share meals (13.7 percent).
Some 80.3 percent of Canadians anticipate further increases in food prices in 2024, especially in meat (70.4 percent), produce (62.2 percent), and dairy (42.1 percent).
