Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food

Comité permanent de l'agriculture et de l'agroalimentaire

For immediate release

Ottawa, February 20 2024 -

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food has written a letter to the Chief Executive Officers of Loblaw and Wal-Mart Canada calling on them to sign and implement the Canadian Grocery Code of Conduct.

The Canadian Grocery Code of Conduct is an industry-led effort to provide greater commercial certainty for the Canadian grocery sector. Throughout the Committee’s ongoing study into efforts to stabilize food prices, witnesses from across the Canadian food supply chain have encouraged businesses to adopt it voluntarily.

To date, two large retailers, Loblaw and Wal-Mart Canada, have expressed their hesitation over signing and implementing the Code. As the Committee notes in its letter, stakeholders across the food supply chain believe that the decision of any one of Canada’s five large retailers to not participate in the Code will jeopardize its overall effectiveness. If these retailers refuse to adopt the Code voluntarily, the Committee is recommending that federal and provincial governments adopt legislation to make it mandatory.

A copy of the letter is available on the Committee’s website.