Pascal Th茅riault comments on Metro quarterly results
Metro announced a 14.6% drop in its net profit for the third quarter, ending July 6, 2024, compared to the same period last year. Its turnover increased by 3.5% to reach 6.65 billion.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been saying for a while that consumers would have to start changing their consumption habits to counter rising food prices,鈥� agronomist and economist聽Pascal Th茅riault, Director of 不良研究所's Farm Management and Technology Program, told . 鈥淎nd I think we鈥檙e seeing it now. When customers move away from processed foods to lower-margin staples, it鈥檚 less profitable per unit sold. That could be part of the answer.鈥�
The last couple of years have seen public opinion, and even some politicians, accuse major food retailers of taking advantage of inflation to increase prices.
Consumers also seem to be turning more to discount supermarkets like Super C or Maxi, but Metro President and CEO Eric La Fl猫che told analysts traditional brands still have their place.
Th茅riault agrees that IGA, Metro and Provigo stores still have reason to exist: "Going to Metro instead of Super C or Provigo instead of Maxi is a choice we make as consumers. Will we save more if we go to a discount store? Yes. Will we get the same service? No."