Provincial Liberals call for closer watch of food pricing

The Ontario government is being asked for safeguards on food pricing.

The provincial Liberals are seeking a ban on the use of algorithmic pricing, which involves consumer data based on their spending habits.

Interim leader John Fraser says it can lead to people buying the same item at the same time, but paying different prices.

And he wants to put a stop to it.

“We should not allow our personal information and algorithms to determine the grocery bill,” says Fraser.

“Data is currency, and it’s being traded by big companies. We have to make sure that we put guardrails around it and ensure that it doesn’t get used against us.”

Frasers bases his proposed legislation on that introduced in Manitoba and British Columbia.

He notes similar concerns were identified in the United States, where a Consumer Report investigation found Instacart’s algorithm produced price differences of up to 23% on identical items between different users.

A report by the Competition Bureau of Canada also warned that algorithmic pricing can lead to anti-competitive behaviour.

Fraser is also concerned with how companies are using the data they collect from consumers.

“Information is currency. Data is currency. ah And we have to, as legislators and regulators, we have to get ahead of the curve. We can’t wait for something to happen and try to roll it back.”

Premier Doug Ford dismisses the notion of the province having a role in pricing, calling it a socialist approach.

“There’s no better way of letting people get lower costs, no matter if it’s cars or homes or groceries, than competition,” says Ford.

“Socialism does not work.”

The Liberals’ proposal is scheduled for second reading at Queen’s Park.