Social media allegations of food price gouging due to the COVID-19 restrictions at the Foodland grocery store in Elliot Lake are unfounded, according to a media representative for Sobeys.
The allegations appeared on the Elliot Lake Buzz Facebook page around March 22 and were based on a picture taken of an $80 Stirling Silver Strip Loin AAA roast. The picture showed the cost per kilogram of about $40 with the roast pictured weighing in at about two kilograms.
Steve Strom, who owns the grocery store together with Jo-Anne Strom, declined comment when contacted by ElliotLakeToday to respond to the picture when it was posted. He referred all media inquiries to Sobeys' head office.
Company media consultant Violet MacLeod said any allegations of price gouging were unfounded.
“I've had our team look into this and our data indicates clearly that we have not changed the retail price per kilogram of this Stirling Silver Strip Loin AAA roast since last year, May of 2019,” she said. “The price reflects the quality, cut and size (well over four pounds) of the roast.”
On the day the picture was posted, the roast was part of a promotion, something MacLeod pointed out in her response.
“In addition to the price per kilogram not changing since last year, the roast was also on promotion when the photo was taken, as part of the store’s Buy One Get One (BOGO) sale and a customer purchasing the product would have received another roast of equal or lesser value for free,” she added.