Canadians could soon receive cash as judge approves Loblaw bread-fixing settlement
Canadian shoppers could soon get a slice of a giant settlement in a bread price-fixing class action lawsuit against Loblaw.
The lawsuit alleges that Canadians were overcharged for bread due to an industry-wide price-fixing scandal involving certain packaged bread products. In addition to Loblaw Companies Ltd. and parent company George Weston Ltd., other grocery chains mentioned in the lawsuit include Metro, Sobeys, and Walmart.
According to a court document, Judge Ed Morgan approved the $500 million settlement on May 8, calling it fair, reasonable, and “in the best interests” of the class members. Out of the $500 million, George Weston and Loblaw must pay $404,000,000. In 2017, the grocery giant previously paid $96 million to eligible customers under the Loblaw Card program who spent more on bread than they should have between 2001 and 2015.
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Once legal fees, costs, disbursements, interest, and applicable taxes have been paid to the class counsel, 78 per cent of the settlement will be allocated to eligible Canadians, excluding Quebec. Twenty-two percent of the settlement has been allocated for Quebec class members. The Quebec settlement approval hearing is set for June 16.
To be eligible, you must be a Canadian resident who purchased packaged bread between Jan. 1, 2001 and Dec. 31, 2021.
According to the Canadian Packaged Bread Class Actions Settlement website, Canadians can sign up to stay informed about the settlement. Now that the settlement has been approved, Canadians will receive information about the next steps. The court document did not specify how much Canadians would receive and how the funds would be distributed.
In a July 2024 statement, George Weston, former president and CEO of Loblaw, stated, “On behalf of the Weston group of companies, we are sorry for the price-fixing behaviour we discovered and self-reported in 2015. This behaviour should never have happened. We have the privilege of serving Canadians from coast to coast. That privilege needs to be earned each and every day.”
With files from Isabelle Docto