ONTARIO – Tariffs on Canadian goods crossing into the United States are already changing Canadian consumer habits, with shoppers making efforts to support domestic producers.
A new Angus Reid Institute analysis of data donated by the Angus Reid Group finds 85 per cent of Canadians stating that they have already done so, or plan to replace U.S. products.
Half (48%) say they’re replacing as many as they can find substitutes for, while 37% say they are replacing those where they can find a similar price and quality.
By far the most likely change that Canadians say they’re making or likely to make is purchasing Canadian groceries.
Among those who will make a change, 98% say they’re looking for “Made in Canada” when they shop.
Breaking this down into more specific actions, the scale of potential change is evident.
Four-in-five (78%) are committing to buying more Canadian products overall, while three-in-five (59%) say they’ll boycott U.S. products.
Travel is also in the crosshairs of Canadians.
Half (48%) say they will cancel or delay plans to enter the U.S. Canadian airlines and travel companies are reportedly already feeling the financial impact of this trend.
Key findings
Amazon is evidently likely to feel the economic pain from Canadians changing their buying habits.
Two-in-five (41%) say that as long as these threats from Trump are being made, they will seek to buy elsewhere than the internet giant.
Men between the ages of 35 and 54 (28%) and current Conservative Party supporters (28%) are most likely to say they will not make any changes in response to this trade conflict.
This is compared to 15% in the general population.
In addition to purchasing changes, one-quarter of Canadians (23%) say they’ve taken to social media to post comments in support of Canada, or plan to do so.
