Buying Canadian has been all the rage lately, thanks to the threat of a 25-per-cent U.S. tariff on Canadian goods and the Great White North's retaliatory proposal.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve likely heard elected officials making pleas to purchase Canuck creations and ordering the removal of red-state booze from provincial liquor store shelves because of President Donald Trump's move toward tariffs.
Google Trends shows interest in search topics “tariff” and “Made in Canada” surged from Feb. 2 to 8. "Tariff" hit a value of 100, which means it reached peak popularity, and "Made in Canada" was 88 out of 100. Feb. 4 was the date initial (subsequently delayed) tariffs were set to go into effect, which explains Canadians' curiosity.
But it turns out labelling of Canadian products varies based on regulation. As reported by CBC, according to the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, a label with “Product of Canada” means the product contains at minimum 98 per cent Canadian made goods. “Made in Canada” means at least 51 per cent of a product's direct costs are national.
Googlers likely weren't aware of the difference in terms, with "Product of Canada" having a value of eight. It made a blip, but not a splash.
In conversations with local businesses, it is clear finding products in Whistler that are 98-per-cent Canadian-made is far from easy.
Rebecca Verstegen owns Hollow Tree Candles, and she said because manufacturing is done overseas in China or in the U.S., consumers are going to be hard-pressed to find 100-per-cent Canadian products.
“Unless you have maple syrup trees and distil it here, we don’t have the infrastructure,” she said.
That said, here are four businesses that have Made in Canada products with a breakdown of what they can source domestically, and what they can’t.
Montis Distilling
Montis Distilling is located in Function Junction, and offers a range of craft liquors distilled onsite in Whistler, using a malt barley base that comes from Armstrong, B.C. Dani Berezowsky is the sales and marketing manager for the spirit distiller, and said they source as locally as possible.
“Our classic Alpine Gin is the first gin we produced here. We're using the red Western cedar tree, and we use the needles from a tree that’s actually in the backyard of the distillery,” she said.
While some botanicals used in their various gins cannot be purchased within Canada, the team at Montis tries to source as locally as possible within seasons. Their bottles come from a Canadian- and U.S.-owned company and the labels are designed in-house and printed in Whistler. Their whiskey barrels are from the U.S. because finding the hand-made barrels domestically isn’t an option.
“I don't feel like we're affected right now. If anything, people are going to want Canadian-made spirits,” Berezowsky said.
Mountain Meal Prep
Mountain Meal Prep is owned by Jacqueline Parakin, and her company creates ready-made meals for home cooking or backcountry adventures.
“I make everything at the Legion in Pemberton and started in 2020,” Parakin said. Her dried meals only require pouring into a pot and simmering, with pastas, casseroles, soups and stews.
She partnered with Buy BC, and the majority of her ingredients are locally sourced veggies, spices and lentils.
Because Parakin's is a small-scale company that doesn’t export, she thinks she can weather any incoming tariffs. The one piece of packaging she couldn’t switch up would be oxygen absorbers that she hasn’t found sold in bulk quantities in Canada. Even that isn’t pressing, as she has a stockpile on hand.
3 Singing Birds
Sara Aldridge is a manager at 3 Singing Birds, and she said their store showcases a large number of products Made in Canada. They sell items found at farmers' markert from ceramics to candles and cards, mostly designed by women.
Because of how creators source their materials, Aldridge said the tariffs could hurt customers’ bottom line.
“Makers may have to look elsewhere for materials and their prices will go up," she said. "Ours will go up as well and it will impact customers."
Lazy Maisie Creates
Helen Bateman owns Lazy Maisie Creates, a Whistler jewelry company. While sourcing in Canada helps keeps cost down from customs, a lot of her gold and silver comes from U.S. refineries.
“If the tariff happens, I’ll try to find wholesalers elsewhere at a reasonable price and see if the customs will be worth the purchase,” she said.
But the Canadian dollar is weak compared to the Euro or the Pound, so what she has to charge would have to go up.
Verstegen of Hollow Tree agreed and pointed out if small businesses look to instead purchase manufactured goods from China, many Chinese sellers only allow purchases in U.S. currency, which is also worth more than the loonie.
“Tariffs don’t benefit anybody in the end because they just make everything more expensive,” Verstegen said.
