The near empty produce section of a Toronto Loblaws is seen on Friday, May 3, 2024.
Canada's Competition Bureau has launched investigations into the parent companies of grocery chains Loblaws and Sobeys for alleged anticompetitive conduct, court documents reveal, with Sobeys' owner calling the inquiry "unlawful."Loblaw Cos. Ltd. and Sobeys parent Empire Co. Ltd. are two of the three major Canadian grocery companies and each owns a number of grocery chains across the country. Both have been under investigation from Canada's Competition Bureau since March 1.
At the time, deputy commissioner Anthony Durocher told a House of Commons committee that property controls can be a barrier both for independent grocery stores and chains looking to expand, as well as for foreign players looking to enter Canada. Sobeys owner Empire has pushed back against the investigation, saying in a separate court application that the probe gave the commissioner "the appearance of a lack of independence" amid public criticism from federal politicians over grocery pricing and retailers' conduct.
The commissioner applied in the Federal Court to order Empire and George Weston to hand over records about real estate holdings, lease agreements, customer data and other records. The commissioner's probe is focused on the companies' operations in Halifax, but also more broadly across the country.The documents show the inquiries are zeroing in on two types of property controls in contracts and commercial leases used by the grocery retailers "in many markets in Canada."
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