Buy Canadian: Purchasing patriotism sees renewed push amid rising tariffs

Buy Canadian sentiment is seeing a resurgence across the country as backlash to U.S. Consumers eager to support local products and businesses are swapping shopping tips and resources online as retailers renew labelling of tariffed or local goods in stores. The Canada List, a website that ranks thousands of products sold in Canada based on their contribution to the Canadian economy, has seen a dramatic rise in traffic in recent days, founder Matthew Shane said in an interview Wednesday.

“It’s a strong indication that the Canadian public is increasingly engaged in these trade tensions.” Shane, an associate professor of psychology at Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, launched the website in March 2025 during the initial tariff dispute. The idea came to him while shopping for cookies at the grocery store. “I was looking at a box of Oreo cookies and I was trying to figure out if they were Canadian or not,” he said.

“The labels were confusing and I just couldn’t figure it out.” He went home and started The Canada List that night. “This is one way that everybody can do their little part,” Shane said. “Perhaps each individual purchase doesn’t make that much of a difference, but collectively it matters.” Margaret Chapman with Narrative Research said the buy Canadian movement is becoming entrenched in shopping habits as trade tensions worsen and consumers look for ways to support the local economy.

Polling has shown many shoppers are willing to pay more for Canadian products — a trend that is likely to gain momentum as the trade war intensifies, she said. Retail Council of Canada president and CEO Kim Furlong said she anticipates retailers will increasingly seek to label products affected by tariffs so consumers can better understand prices. has once again added T symbols to its grocery shelf labels to signal products affected by tariffs while continuing to use the maple leaf symbol in its stores to signal homegrown products.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. Companies in this story: (TSX: L) Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press