- Large majorities are changing their purchasing to support Canadian products, including paying more for a Canadian product versus a U.S. one, forgoing a favourite product made in the U.S. and spending more time shopping to determine Canadian-made products.
- Atlantic Canadians widely support the actions of both the federal and their respective provincial governments in response to the tariffs.
February 21, 2025
Given the proposed tariffs by the U.S. government on Canadian goods, there has been increasing focus on buying Canadian. Narrative Research asked Atlantic Canadians about their actions in response to the proposed tariffs, and the results reveal Atlantic Canadians are much more likely to buy Canadian goods given the proposed tariffs (75%). Further, three in four (73%) are willing to pay more for a product made in Canada versus one that is made in the United States, and those who are willing to do so would pay an average of approximately 17% more. Moreover, Atlantic Canadians intend to put in the effort to find Canadian products, with 85% indicating they will spend more time when shopping to find out whether a product is made in Canada before purchasing. That said, consumers want support in this regard, with 94% agreeing that retailers should make it easier to identify products that are made in Canada. They are also willing to forgo favourites, with seven in ten (70%) saying they will no longer buy a favourite product because it is made in the U.S. Altogether, the results indicate that the buying Canadian sentiment is very strong among Atlantic Canadians.
Atlantic Canadians clearly want action to support the Canadian economy in the wake of the proposed tariffs. Nine in ten (92%) support the removal of trade barriers between provinces. There is also strong agreement (93%) that Canada needs to diversify its trading partners to be less reliant on the U.S.
The actions of both the federal and Atlantic Canadian provincial governments in response to the proposed tariffs are widely supported. Eight in ten Atlantic Canadians support each of the federal government’s (81%) and their respective provincial government’s actions (79%). This is the case across Atlantic Canadian provinces.
“Clearly, Atlantic Canadians are showing strong levels of support for Canada’s producers, and recent threats from the American President have unified residents in wanting to buy locally,” said Margaret Chapman, COO & Partner. “Results also point to a need for retailers to help shoppers to more clearly identify products that are made in Canada. We also found huge levels of support for the removal of inter-provincial trade barriers, which could dramatically shift our economic landscape.”
Results are from a study conducted with Narrative Research’s East Coast Voice online panel. The online survey was conducted between February 10 and 19, 2025, with 1,136 Atlantic Canadian residents aged 18 years or older. Results have been weighted by region, age and gender to reflect the overall adult population of Atlantic Canadians. As a non-probability sample (i.e., a panel sample where residents have joined a panel to share their opinions), a margin of error is not applied. A comparable probability sample would be accurate to within +2.9 percentage points, at the 95% confidence level.
Narrative Research www.narrativeresearch.ca, is non-partisan and is one of Canada’s leading public opinion and market research companies. Narrative Research is 100% Canadian-owned and a certified women business enterprise (WBE). Follow us on LinkedIn or at narrativeresearch.ca/news.
For more information, please contact:
Margaret Chapman, COO & Partner, Narrative Research at 902.493-3834, mchapman@narrativeresearch.ca
Or
Margaret Brigley, CEO & Partner, Narrative Research at 902.493-3830, mbrigley@narrativeresearch.ca
