The idea[NL1] of buying local has firmly taken root in the minds of Quebecers. According to a survey conducted by the UPA in April, 93% of Quebecers consider it important to place greater emphasis on purchasing products derived from local agriculture.
A study by the Responsible Consumption Observatory also revealed that 70.6% of consumers consider the geographical origin of a product (its place of manufacture) as a key factor in their purchasing decisions. This data illustrates a genuine collective commitment to promoting local purchasing.
Do Our Shopping Carts Really Reflect Our Values?
The issue with these numbers is that, even though they point to a positive trend, they’re based on intentions rather than on actual, measurable buying behaviour.
We know that between intention and action lies reality. With the cost of living soaring, managing our spending has become a fragile balancing act. Between rent, bills, and the grocery cart, it’s not easy to keep up. Buying local takes more than goodwill: it takes time, effort, and often extra money. Sadly, our budgets don’t rise with our best intentions.
Over the past few decades, the proportion of household budgets in Quebec devoted to food has been steadily decreasing, in competition with other categories of expenditure. A report from Statistique Québec on the evolution of consumption habits between 1998 and 2023 shows that the share of the budget devoted to food products dropped from 13% to 10%. Other sectors, such as the purchase of sport utility vehicles and technologies (cell phones, computers, etc.), now take up a growing share.
Our values of solidarity with Quebec producers are not always fully reflected in our current purchasing behaviours. The good news is, where there’s a will, there’s a way, and that means there is room for improvement. By making these choices easier and more accessible, we could better align our words with our shopping carts, and our society with the model it truly wishes to cultivate.
