Producers not getting rich off high food prices, says union
By Lethbridge Herald on August 5, 2025.
Nathan Reiter
Lethbridge Herald
Local journalism Initiative Reporter
While the prices of groceries have gone up, the National Farmers Union (NFU) is pointing the finger at corporations.
James Hannay, a policy assistant with the NFU, says a lot of the rising price in food cost has been going back to corporations while farmers have not been able to increase the price of their goods at the same rate as food price inflation.
“We were interested in this because of the food pricing place that Canadians consumers started to notice around the start of the pandemic, but more specifically around 2022 and 2023. Last year, there was a grassroots boycott into Loblaw’s and their affiliated stores. The Retail Council of Canada, who represents a lot of the grocery stores, blamed food price increases on rising input prices for farmers. If that’s true, then farmers should be able to sell their products for a higher price, they should be able to pass costs onto grocers, and then they would pass costs on to consumers. That has not been the case.”
According to information from the Competition Bureau of Canada, five grocers make up 76 per cent of the market share. Those five companies consist of Loblaw (29 per cent), Sobeys (21 per cent), Metro (11 per cent), Costco (11 per cent) and Walmart (eight per cent).
Hannay says bringing in more competition through another vendor would not be feasible at the moment.
“I don’t know if bringing another grocer in is possible unless there is government support for it and I’m not sure that would be a very popular adventure either. One of the things that we’ve been focusing on more is on the farmers’ side of prices and to get better value for farmers for farm products. The solution that we’ve been proposing is to bring back collective marketing institutions to give farmers more bargaining power against these ever growing and already massive food processors or traders.”
With tariffs being a major talking point in Canadian foreign policy with U.S. President Donald Trump, Hannay says companies may be able to use them to their advantage against consumers and farmers.
“I think it has the potential to, and I don’t think it’ll happen the way many people are expecting. They will be able to effectively pass on any costs they have to farmers for incurring that, and if they’re trading between themselves or their subsidiaries in Canada and the U.S., they’re able to pass along costs in a different way when they’re trading between themselves and their subsidiaries over borders. I think there’s an opportunity for corporations to build a profit off of tariffs that would affect farmers”
10-9
just keep embracing the oligarchs – they really have our best interests at heart. you know, capitalism is not perfect, but it is what jesus would have wanted for us, as he championed greed as the american way.
I usually avoid bringing this into this platform, but you started it!
What jesus do you speak of? Not Biblical Jesus! I remember something much different:
1 Timothy 6:6–10
But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Luke 12:13–21
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he (Jesus) said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he(Jesus) told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
The farmers are getting nothing extra and paying all the extra costs for fuel, manpower, equipment, parts, and many other charges but get no extra funds selling to major corporations such as Loblaws.
I decided to help harvest potatoes, a few years ago working for a farm who was diverse, having carrots, potatoes, celery, corn, grains, etc and just bought some of the new to the shelves baby carrots for this year. I am glad I am not that farmer, because I saw all the extra costs they have had to eat up, while the major corporations increased costs 40-80% on many products.
I have watched many of the products I buy go up that much and in a few cases double! It is unacceptable!
Our farmers need our support, but many just sit back and say there is nothing I can do, but complain around the coffee table!
Not much gets done whining at coffee!