Loblaw has agreed to sign onto a Grocery Code of Conduct brought forward by the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers.
Vice President of Public Policy and Advocacy with the federation, Gary Sands calls it a “huge milestone for the industry.”
Sands says they’re getting closer to getting all the major grocers on board.
He says it’s great to see Canada’s largest grocery chain in support of a grocery code of conduct, “we’re a couple of feet now away from the finish line, we just have to bring Walmart on board.”
He says in the past, in the case of a product in high demand or low supply, the chains would go to the suppliers, forcing the suppliers to purchase more of that product, despite agreements in place for a lesser amount.
He says the chains might impose penalties or charges on the supplier if they weren’t able to deliver. “The supplier unfortunately, would divert away from the independent grocers, even though they had agreements, and that meant we weren’t getting fair supply. Under the code, that practice will end.”