The United States has made an enemy out of Canada after President Donald Trump imposed these tariffs and word vomited about us becoming the 51st state. Since tariffs were first imposed, Canadians have been focusing on buying local and supporting local businesses, instead of giving their money to the US.

Don’t get me wrong, I am beyond ecstatic to see Canadians supporting Canadian businesses, although I am a little weirded out that it took the threat of tariffs and the booing of our anthem for Canadians to realize the benefit of buying local.

However, I have a theory.

Demand for Canadian goods has skyrocketed. I don’t know if you’ve seen the photos on Instagram or videos on TikTok, but we are willing to pay double, if not triple the price to buy local right now. Grocery store CEOs are noticing this, I’m sure, and because profit is more important than the meaning behind buying local, I think we are going to start seeing a hike in prices, specifically for Canadian goods, because we have proven that we are willing to pay extra.

I went to the grocery store the other day and they had strawberries for 99 cents and some for $5. If you can believe it, the 99 cent strawberries were full, not even one carton missing, while the $5 strawberries were picked bare. Can you guess why there was such a price difference? You guessed it, the cheap ones were from the US, and the expensive ones were Canadian.

I don’t want to believe it and I really hope I’m wrong, but I do think making more money is more important to these grocery stores than helping us support Canadians.

We saw the same thing happen during the COVID-19 pandemic. Toilet paper prices skyrocketed after we cleared the shelves in a panic.

My mom went to the Western Fair District market over the weekend and said the place was more popular than it had ever been in the last two decades. Even these little shops that are seeing huge increases in demand but not supply will most likely have increases to their prices.

It’s simple supply and demand economics. Canadian produce, specifically dairy, isn’t seeing a change in their supply, however their demand has increased, meaning they can charge more for it because it’s considered a hot commodity.

By that same token, it’s not really a great time for price hikes as many industries are sitting on the edge of their seats to see what this trade war means for their businesses, and many people are already being laid off.

So here’s to hoping supporting Canada doesn’t mean breaking the bank. Canadian grocery costs may see increases and although supporting Canadians is best, I think it is also a totally viable option to support other countries that aren’t the US, if it makes shopping on a budget livable.