Walmart is not profiteering on food inflation as it saw reduced grocery profits last year, the Walmart Canada CEO told a Commons Agriculture committee.. Walmart Canada CEO Gonzalo Gebara .“I want to state clearly Walmart Canada is not attempting to profit from these inflationary conditions,” testified Walmart Canada CEO Gonzalo Gebara..“In fact, Walmart Canada’s gross profit rate from its food business actually declined last year.”.Gebara would not disclose figures but said Walmart's food margins were below multi-year trends..“Our gross profit margin from the food business is lower than previous years,” said Gebara..Competitors like Loblaw Companies reported food profit margins averaging 3% to 4% annually, according to Blacklock’s Reporter..“I lived in Argentina and led the Walmart business in that country where inflation went from 20% five years ago to almost 100% last year, so I know our customers and all Canadians are feeling the pain of inflation,” said Gebara..Conservative MP Lianne Rood (Lambton-Kent, ON) said Walmart appeared to make up for its declining margins by squeezing suppliers with “nickel and dime” fees..“Walmart is already considered to be one of the worst in the industry for imposing fees on their suppliers,” Rood told the Agriculture committee..“I have heard figures like $900 for missing a label on a box or bag of product or $2,000 for shorting an order, even by two boxes.”.“I’ve heard of late fines for truck drivers who were stopped because they didn’t make their appointment time because they didn’t have safety shoes on while they stayed in their own truck,” said Rood..“The unscrupulous fee structure of mega companies like Walmart has rightly driven attention to the need for a grocery code of conduct.”.Gebara denied unfair trade practices..“Those fees normally go both ways,” said Gebara..“We receive cost increases.”.Liberal Tim Louis (Kitchener-Conestoga, ON) complained consolidation in the retail grocery trade left consumers with few choices..“The previous Walmart Canada president said he felt ‘there was healthy competition in the market,’” said Louis..“We are hearing there may be competition between a few companies in the market, but just five grocers sell over 80% of all the food we eat in Canada: Loblaw’s, Sobeys, Metro, Walmart, and Costco.”.Agriculture committee hearings on the grocery trade follow Statistics Canada data showing dramatic increases from pre-pandemic prices..StatsCan Average Monthly Retail Prices For Selected Products indicate since 2020, Canadians have been paying more for everyday products like coffee (up 20%), onions (31%), butter (41%) and spaghetti (up 54%)..“In the current economic context, many Canadians are facing the biggest financial challenges of their lives,” the federal Financial Consumer Agency of Canada wrote in a February 13 report Consumer Vulnerability: Evidence From the Monthly COVID-19 Financial Well-Being Survey..“More are borrowing money to cover their day-to-day expenses including by using high-cost loans.”
