Dollarama: Canadian Owned but very little Made in Canada Stuff

Dollarama is one of Canada’s largest retailers but if asked to name where most of their products come from I bet you wouldn’t think of Canada. Well, I asked if they could provide a list of products with Canadian content to add to the directory on ShopCanadianStuff.ca and they refused saying they do not provide the country of origin of their products.

Despite this I did a quick snack run and can enthusiastically endorse the excellent value potato chips from their house line D Gourmet which are marked as made in Canada. I was also able to find Krack-o-pop Cheese Puffs marked as Product of Canada and Caramilk bars which are made in Toronto. They also have some made in Canada breads though I expect the bakeries will vary by location so please check before buying. A few more made in Canada food items are Kellogg’s Froot Loops Cereal, Quaker Harvest Crunch, Quaker Oatmeal, Kraft peanut butter and a variety of Dare cookies.

In my view the key thing is to buy products actually made or produced in Canada and not worry too much about the ownership of the brand or retailer. Dealing with Dollarama really reinforced this point as their Canadian ownership is still pushing mostly imported products and their stores are regularly so understaffed that one cashier will operate two registers at a time.