This Lanark County grocery store is reducing prices to fight food inflation
In the midst of record food inflation, one local grocery store in Lanark County is actually cutting prices.
Since the beginning of March, Balderson Village Cheese has been lowering the prices of all its products in store by 15 to 35 per cent.
"I see people in our community, friends of mine, family, people walking into the store that are having trouble putting food on the table for their families. I thought, there's something we need to do about this," says Greg Black, owner of Balderson Village Cheese.
Black is going about it the old fashioned way, phoning up his suppliers and shipping companies to negotiate lower prices. Black says in many cases, the companies he works with were on board to make products more affordable for customers at the end of the supply chain.
"They all came back and said we'll be able to cut five per cent here, a little percent there, this much here, maybe we'll give you free shipping here, and we pass that on right to the customer," Black said.
In some instances, Black says it was removing fuel surcharges from when gas was above $2 a litre that was still on his bill. Other savings came from cutting shipping costs all together.
"Instead of spending $250 on shipping, I spend $80 on gas. That savings from shipping goes right to the customer."
Products like chips have been reduced from $7.99 to $5.99 and hot chocolate from $2.99 to $1.99.
Black has also committed to price matching any products that are found elsewhere at a lower price, and then reducing his price permanently.
While Black is in business to make money and create a living for himself and his family, he says reducing prices hasn't been bad for business.
"Our margins are less, absolutely. We pay our bills, everybody makes a modest paycheque, nobody is hurting."
The small village store owner is hoping his actions prove to big box grocers that steps to reduce food inflation can be made at relative ease.
"It's just the right thing to do," said Black.
"Sometimes you just have to hit the pause button and on that big corporate machine and say we need to stop charging what we're charging."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Amish youth experience a rite of passage called Rumspringa. It’s not what you might think
The idea of “Rumspringa” has a specific spot in the American imagination. A rite of passage for young people in some Amish communities, Rumspringa is seen by most outsiders as a wild time away from strict Amish rules, when teenagers can experiment with the modern vices of the world.
Djokovic needs medical attention after getting knocked on the head by a water bottle at Italian Open
Novak Djokovic needed medical attention after apparently getting knocked on the head by a water bottle after a win at the Italian Open on Friday.