Loblaw discount reduction not evidence of grocery collusion: competition expert

An expert in Canadian competition says Loblaw’s move to reduce discounts on foods nearing their best-before date is a normal practice in the industry, not a sign of collusion.

News broke this week that the biggest grocery retailer in the country would no longer offer discounts of up to 50 per cent on such items, instead marking them down by 30 per cent across the board. 

In a letter to the competition commissioner Tuesday, NDP MP Alistair MacGregor called for an investigation into potential anti-competitive practices or collusion in grocery retail.

MacGregor said that comments by Loblaw indicated they changed their discount to align with their competitors, and that this was cause for suspicion. 

NDP House Leader Peter Julian told CityNews the competition bureau needs to take a look at what he called “clear gouging.”

“To raise the prices on expiring foods at this critical, difficult time for so many Canadians is simply cruel,” he said.

He’s also calling for Loblaws officials to appear at committee to explain this change.

But Michael Osborne, the chair of the Canadian competition practice at law firm Cozen O’Connor, says it’s normal in retail for companies to observe one another’s practices and make changes of their own in an effort to compete. 

Metro said on Tuesday that it has been marking down nearly expired items by up to 30 per cent for more than two decades.