Bank of Canada Study Confirms Canadians Are Putting Their Money Where Their Mouth Is
For years, the Buy Canadian movement has been a topic of passionate discussion, particularly since the onset of trade tensions with the United States under former President Donald Trump. Now, concrete data from the Bank of Canada provides compelling evidence that this sentiment is translating into real economic action.
Measurable Shifts in Consumer Behavior
Central bank researchers have analyzed three distinct datasets that collectively demonstrate a clear trend: Canadians are consciously redirecting their spending away from American goods and services toward domestic alternatives. This shift is most pronounced in two key areas: travel and grocery purchases.
Travel patterns show dramatic changes. Historically, the United States has been the most popular international destination for Canadian travelers. However, the Bank of Canada study reveals this has changed significantly since trade tensions escalated. Last year alone, Canadians took approximately 10 million fewer trips to the United States, representing a substantial 25 percent decline.
The reduction was particularly stark in land border crossings, which plummeted by 8.4 million trips (30 percent), while air travel decreased by 1.2 million trips (12 percent). Concurrently, Statistics Canada data indicates Canadians are now spending more on domestic tourism and travel to international destinations other than the U.S. During the first three quarters of 2025, as the Buy Canadian movement gained momentum, domestic trips increased by four percent, with spending on travel and tourism within Canada rising by approximately 10 percent.
Grocery Aisle Preferences Revealed Through Barcode Data
Tracking spending in grocery stores presented a more complex challenge, but researchers turned to the NielsenIQ Homespun Consumer panel for insights. This monthly data involves 10,000 Canadian households scanning barcodes of their purchases, about three-quarters of which are grocery items. By analyzing these barcodes to determine product licensing origins, researchers could trace—though imperfectly—the country of origin for these goods.
The findings reveal a modest but clearly visible shift from U.S. products to Canadian alternatives. In March 2025, when trade tensions escalated with the launch of Trump's tariff war, food spending on Canadian products jumped by two percentage points compared to January of that year, while the share spent on U.S. goods fell by a similar amount.
This shift was not temporary. According to the report, what started in March wasn't short-lived—it persisted through the summer. The change was more pronounced in specific categories, particularly coffee and fruit juices. Researchers suggest this may be partly attributable to counter-tariffs imposed by Canada, which made some U.S. goods like orange juice more expensive. Most of these tariffs have since been removed, but the spending patterns have shown remarkable persistence.
Sustained Momentum and Future Intentions
The Bank of Canada's latest consumer survey from the fourth quarter of 2025 confirms that the Buy Canadian movement remains robust. More than one-third of respondents indicated they plan to increase spending on domestic travel in the coming months, while nearly half stated they intend to reduce spending on travel to the United States.
This comprehensive analysis demonstrates that what began as rhetorical support for domestic products has evolved into measurable economic behavior. Canadians are not merely giving lip service to the idea of supporting homegrown businesses—they are actively reshaping their consumption patterns in ways that have tangible impacts on both sides of the border.
