The public discourse on the nature of grocery disruptions has turned into an all out food fight as politicians and pundits lob tomatoes over the cause and severity of Canada’s missing ingredients.
There is little doubt that groceries are in tighter supply — and certainly more expensive — than they were before the pandemic. But the gravity of the issue can range depending on geographic location and supplier, and the rhetoric often risks exaggeration. The mandate could keep as many as 26,000 truckers who regularly traverse the Canada-U. S. border from delivering goods, according to the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the American Trucking Associations.
But the mandate has still garnered criticism from experts who warn it could exacerbate an already-existing problem. Recent winter storms haven’t helped. Last week, when Toronto faced its heaviest snowfall in more than a decade, local grocers reported delayed deliveries due to trucks unable to navigate icy and unplowed terrain.
I must be the luckiest shopper in Canada. None of the places I shop have shortages of anything.