Loblaw agrees to sign grocery code of conduct after months of negotiations
CTV
Loblaw Cos. Ltd. said Thursday it's ready to sign on to the grocery code of conduct, paving the way for an agreement that's been years in the making.
Loblaw Cos. Ltd. said Thursday it's ready to sign on to the grocery code of conduct, paving the way for an agreement that's been years in the making.
After six months of negotiations, Loblaw president and CEO Per Bank said the retailer is now ready to sign as long as other industry players do too.
"The code now is fair, and it will not lead to higher prices," he said in an interview.
The code has been developed by a group of leaders in the food industry, with the intention of evening the playing field for suppliers and smaller retailers.
But it appeared to come to a halt last December when Loblaw and Walmart Canada said they wouldn't sign the voluntary code because they were concerned it would raise prices for shoppers.
Nick Henn, Loblaw's chief legal officer, said the underlying principles of the code haven't changed.
"We felt that the words weren't clear in lots of areas, and so we've spent some time with the working committee and the interim board, fixing those areas, improving the code and providing the clarity that we thought it lacked the last time around," he said in the same interview alongside Bank.
