Some Canadians are stealing high-priced groceries from grocery stores as the cost of living continues to rise, and some are even taking to social media to brag about it.
Last week, Sylvain Charlebois, a professor at Dalhousie University, wrote about the impact of food theft.
“Food theft has always been a major problem, but with food inflation, shopkeepers now fear the culprits more than ever,” wrote the head of the Halifax-based Agri-Food Analytics Lab in an article published Jan. 10.
“According to some industry data, between $2,000 and $5,000 worth of groceries can be stolen per week at an average sized grocery store in Canada. Given the relatively small profit margins in the grocery store, this amount is huge. To cover losses, grocers have to raise prices so we all end up paying for the food theft.”
Twitter users weren’t happy with the words of Charlebois, with some proudly admitting they shoplifted and others repeating the phrase, “If you see someone shoplifting, no, you haven’t.”
Charlebois eventually responded to some of the online backlash and remained firm on his position on food theft.
“You think it’s appropriate to steal from the grocery store just because you think the grocery prices are too high? Crazy,” he wrotewhile retweeting another Twitter user.
Since it was tweeted on Jan. 10, Charlebois’ tweet has garnered more than seven million views and hundreds of replies, most of which reject his opinion.
Some people on the internet have also called Charlebois personally, divulging his income and saying he works for Loblaw Companies Ltd. and Galen Weston’s family “shills”.
Outrage over soaring food prices has been a hot topic as inflation continues to impact Canadians.
In early January, a picture of a package of chicken breasts at a Toronto Loblaw went viral as people expressed outrage at the high-priced label.
The photo, taken by CTV News reporter Siobhan Morris, showed a five-piece pack of chicken sold for nearly $27/kg.
The story goes on
In November, both Loblaw and Metro reported increases in sales and profits, but said they resisted continued price hikes by suppliers.
Research from Dalhousie University also showed that Canada’s three largest food companies — Loblaw, Metro and Empire — posted higher profits in 2022 than their average performances over the past five years.
Notably, Loblaw surpassed his five-year average, but also outperformed each of those years individually.
Grocery is becoming a concern for many Canadians as a family of four is expected to spend around $1,066 more on groceries in 2023. (Photo by Chris Stoodley/Yahoo News Canada)
According to a grocery report released in December, a Canadian family of four will spend about $1,066 more on groceries in 2023, with grocery prices projected to rise by as much as 7 percent year-on-year.
“In 2023, Canadians are expected to continue feeling the effects of high food inflation, and food insecurity and affordability will also be a major concern as food prices rise,” states the Canada Food Price report.
“Canadians must be prepared to spend more in the coming year.”