Canada Unveils $3.2 Billion Food Security Strategy to Lower Grocery Prices and Reduce Import Dependence

The Carney government's National Food Security Strategy, titled 'More Choice. More Control. More Canada,' allocates over $3 billion across four main pillars: spurring grocery retail competition, boosting domestic food production, expanding year-round fruit and vegetable growing, and cutting agricultural red tape. A $1 billion Food-Link Fund will expand the Ontario Food Terminal and establish 40 new regional food hubs, giving independent grocers a route to market that bypasses the dominant 'Big Five' retail chains. Another $1 billion through Farm Credit Canada targets food processing capacity, aiming to reverse a pattern in which Canada exports raw agricultural commodities only to import them back as processed goods — illustrated by the $724 million in fresh tomatoes exported in 2025 alongside $511 million in processed tomato imports. A $750 million investment in controlled-environment agriculture, including greenhouses and vertical farms, seeks to reduce Canada's heavy reliance on imported produce, currently at 88 per cent for fresh fruit and 72 per cent for vegetables. The Competition Bureau receives nearly $130 million in additional funding to investigate anti-competitive practices such as property controls used by major grocers to block rival openings. Supporting measures include expanded loan access for young farmers, a higher Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption for farm successions, and regulatory reforms to speed seed, fertilizer, and veterinary product approvals, along with a controversial provision allowing temporary pesticide use under food or economic security conditions.