Grocery CEOs Raking it in, while Food Banks Struggling

Weston in casual clothes, trying to relate to the everyman

As people are shelling out more than 10 percent more for their food at supermarkets because of rising inflation, the CEO of a Canadian grocery chain got a C$1.2 million raise to take home C$11.8 million.

Galen Weston Jr is the scion of one of Canada's richest families that runs Loblaws, and as president and chairman of the grocery chain he received C$8.4 million -- but consultants felt he was underpaid.

Weston is president and chairman of Loblaws

According to Catherine Thomas, spokesperson for Loblaws Cos Ltd, it is misleading to characterise his compensation plan as a raise, since he only took over the title of president and chairman in May 2021. Prior to that he was executive chairman of Loblaws.

Weston is not the only one to take home a massive paycheque. 

Eric La Fleche, CEO of the grocery chain Metro Inc, received CA$5.3 million in compensation last year, up from C$5,018,907 from the year before.

And Michael Medline, CEO of Nova Scotia-based Empire Company that owns Sobey's, Safeway, FreshCo, Foodland and other grocery brands, took in C$8,651,285 last year, up from C$7.4 million the year before.

Nevertheless, the optics of getting over $1 million in these tight times do not look good.

Medline of Empire Co.

Food banks are seeing an unprecedented number of people accessing their services because they cannot afford to put food on the table. 

In Toronto, Daily Bread Food Bank which has 128 locations in the city, saw about 65,000 clients per month before the Covid-19 pandemic. In March the number quadrupled to 270,000.

Some people are resorting to eating only one meal a day, two if they have enough food. One woman interviewed on TV said she tried to become vegetarian to cut costs, but it didn't help much.

PROOF is a research program looking into policy interventions that can help reduce food insecurity in Canada.

However, food inflation is worsening the severity of food insecurity people are facing, resulting in them turning to food banks.

Daily Bread seeing quadruple the clients pre 2020

The most recent PROOF food insecurity report in 2021 found 5.8 million Canadians are food insecure in all 10 provinces, with one in four ending up at food banks.

The number is probably higher now.

Canada is fast becoming country with haves and have nots, with the gap widening faster by the day.