Canadians may see less food in grocery stores, but experts say no need to panic

Canadians shouldn’t worry about food availability or panic buy, experts said, but they may notice shortages of some items and higher prices.

Canadians will likely experience shortages of some food items and increased prices as the Omicron COVID-19 variant snags supply chains and a vaccine mandate takes effect for cross-border truckers, according to industry experts.

However, they say that Canadians should not worry about food availability and that no one needs to panic buy.

“There is food on the grocery shelves,” said Michelle Wasylyshen, spokesperson for the Retail Council of Canada, which represents big-box grocery stores in the country.

She said, though, that there could be shortages of certain products, such as soups, cereals, fresh fruits and vegetables, and meats.

Some Canadians may have noticed empty shelves recently, but Wasylyshen said that is a result of the winter storm that hit Canada over the previous week.

While weather plays a role in shipment delays, other, long-term issues still persist that has the retail council “concerned,” Wasylyshen said.

These include labour shortages from absenteeism and the Omicron COVID-19 wave, which has caused workers to have to isolate and impacted operations.

Fortunately, both British Columbia and Ontario have said that it appears the peak of the fifth wave of the pandemic has been reached, so more workers are expected to return, Wasylyshen said.