Canadians’ quarantine shopping lists

Report on consumer behaviour highlights evolving preferences amid physical-distancing reality

Even as the frenzied stocking of pantries with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic began to ease in April, grocery store sales remained elevated, while consumer shopping behaviours continued to evolve to reflect our new physical-distancing reality, Statistics Canada said in a report Monday.

Sales of beer and wine in provinces where these products are available in grocery stores, for example, moved sharply higher in the latter half of March as Canadians adjusted to the closing of bars and restaurants, the report says.

At the same time, households turned to home coffee brewing as access to coffee shops was limited, with yearover-year sales of coffee filters increasing 68 per cent in the week ending April 11.

The report also points to rising sales of hair dye as an example of consumer preferences that are evolving during the pandemic, as Canadians, faced with the closure of hair salons and barber shops, “took personal grooming into their own hands.” But while sales of hair dye jumped 75 per cent that week, cosmetic products fell 33 per cent as housebound consumers let their true complexions show.

Households continued to buy more hand sanitizer, toilet paper, canned goods and baking supplies in April than before the COVID-19 pandemic, helping fuel a 40 per cent jump in grocery store sales for the week ending March 21compared to the same week last year, the agency said.

The week prior, retail grocery sales soared 46 per cent. That week included Easter, as well as the introduction of a government advisory against non-essential travel.

The StatCan report, the second since the onset of the pandemic, covers the period from the week ending March 21 to the week ending April 11, Statistics Canada said. The March surge came as Canadians stockpiled essential goods and prepared to shop less frequently, among other reasons.

The sales increase slowed the last week of March and first week of April, with12 per cent jumps compared to the same weeks in 2019, while the week

ending April 11 saw a 19 per cent rise. That trajectory roughly mirrors the performance of grocery retailers, including Metro Inc., which says food same-store sales were up 25 per cent versus last year in the first four weeks of the third quarter ending April 11.

“Purchases at grocery stores spiked during the first three weeks of March, but stabilized by the end of the month as no shortages were anticipated,” the report said.

“Our teams are actively replenishing Walmart.ca and store shelves to meet increased demand for customers, though demand is changing,” said a spokesperson for Walmart Canada.

“We’ve seen fewer large-scale purchases as Canadians stocked up early on. Customers are continuing to focus on the basic needs for their families with their weekly shop for produce, groceries, consumables and baby items,” he said in an email.

“There continues to be very strong demand for baking, snacks, ready to fix goods, with fresh (sic) experiencing similar trends. As our customers continue to stay home, we are seeing sales in categories like office supplies and electronics, stationery and crafts (home schooling) and fitness equipment.”

Sales of health and personal care items slowed after the March surge, Statistics Canada said in a special report on how shopping patterns have changed since Canada stepped up its COVID-19 public health campaigns.

In the first week of March, for example, hand sanitizer sales increased by 792 per cent compared to the same week of 2019. By the week of April 11, hand sanitizer sales were up 345 per cent.

Soap, mask and glove sales remained high in the week ending April 11 with 68 per cent and 114 per cent jumps respectively.

Bathroom tissue sales moderated, but were still 81 per cent higher that week.

Purchases of shelf-stable products moved closer to prepandemic levels, according to the agency.

For the week ending April 11, rice sales rose 12 per cent while canned goods rose 47 per cent and pasta jumped 49 per cent. In contrast, infant formula sales fell 15 per cent.

People continued to buy baking supplies amid ongoing efforts to stay home.

In the second and third week of March, flour sales increased 208 and 207 per cent respectively.

By the week ending April 11, that had slowed to an 81 per cent increase. Butter and margarine sales rose 18 per cent, milk was up 21per cent and eggs jumped 44 per cent.

Mike von Massow, associate professor in the food agriculture and resource economics department at the University of Guelph, said some changes in shopping patterns may remain, including increased demand for baking goods.

He added that the virus has accelerated existing trends, particularly toward online grocery shopping, for a wide variety of products including fruits and vegetables.

“This sustained increase in demand suggests not just a transfer from food service but a real change in behaviour. People are baking more, and would like to bake even more than that. Milk and eggs are also components of baking but are up a smaller percentage because they start from a bigger base.

“We would also have expected milk and egg demand to be higher given we are spending more time at home. We drink more milk at home than we do in restaurants so overall fluid milk consumption is likely higher.”