10 Products You May Have Thought Were Canadian, but Aren't
Author: Matthew Shane
Published: May 6, 2025
Just because a product has a maple leaf on the box and says “Made with Canadian Pride” doesn’t mean it’s Canadian.
The truth is, many of the products Canadians feel most loyal to are no longer Canadian-owned—or never were to begin with. In this post, we’re pulling back the curtain on 10 everyday items that many people assume are local… but aren’t.
Here are 10 products you might have sworn were ours—but aren’t (and one that reverses the trend).
🍞 1. Dempster’s Bread
- Ownership: 🇲🇽 Grupo Bimbo (Mexico)
- CANADA Score: 7/10
The Backstory: One of Canada’s most recognizable bread brands, Dempster’s is still baked in Canada but has been owned by Grupo Bimbo—the world’s largest baking company—since 2014.
What’s Canadian: Baked in Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec with Canadian wheat and workers.
What’s Not: Ownership, profits, and decisions are entirely Mexican-controlled.
Bottom Line: Canadian-made, foreign-owned. Strong local footprint, but no longer Canadian-controlled.
🍹 2. Mott’s Clamato
- Ownership: 🇺🇸 Keurig Dr Pepper (USA)
- CANADA Score: 4/10
The Backstory: Invented in California but beloved as the base of Canada’s Caesar cocktail. Owned by Keurig Dr Pepper.
What’s Canadian: Bottled in London, Ontario, with Canadian-focused marketing.
What’s Not: Ingredients are mostly imported and all strategic decisions are American.
Bottom Line: Emotionally Canadian. Legally and financially, not at all.
☕ 3. Tim Hortons
- Ownership: 🇧🇷 3G Capital via RBI (Brazil)
- CANADA Score: 6/10
The Backstory: A national icon founded in Hamilton in 1964, now owned by Brazilian investment firm 3G Capital.
What’s Canadian: Roasted in Hamilton, locally franchised.
What’s Not: Brand control and profit funneling is globalized.
Bottom Line: Still deeply part of Canadian life, but not Canadian-owned in any meaningful sense.
🧀 4. Black Diamond Cheese
- Ownership: 🇫🇷 Lactalis Group (France)
- CANADA Score: 6/10
The Backstory: Started in Belleville, Ontario in 1933. Acquired by French dairy giant Lactalis.
What’s Canadian: Canadian milk and production under supply management.
What’s Not: Global ownership and marketing strategy.
Bottom Line: Made here, milked here, but monetized from France.
🌭 5. French’s Mustard
- Ownership: 🇺🇸 McCormick & Company (USA)
- CANADA Score: 4/10
The Backstory: American brand that gained Canadian loyalty after Heinz left Leamington.
What’s Canadian: Mustard seed from Saskatchewan and Alberta.
What’s Not: Manufactured in Ohio. U.S. controlled and profited.
Bottom Line: Canadian-grown seeds, but largely a foreign product.
🥤 6. Canada Dry
- Ownership: 🇺🇸 Keurig Dr Pepper (USA)
- CANADA Score: 5/10
The Backstory: Invented in Toronto in 1904. Sold off decades ago.
What’s Canadian: Bottled in Canada (mostly GTA).
What’s Not: Imported ingredients, U.S. decision-making.
Bottom Line: “Canada” in name only.
🍫 7. Coffee Crisp
- Ownership: 🇨🇭 Nestlé (Switzerland)
- CANADA Score: 6/10
The Backstory: A Canadian favorite created by Nestlé Canada in the 1930s.
What’s Canadian: Still made in Canada, for Canadians.
What’s Not: Swiss-owned and directed globally.
Bottom Line: Made here, loved here—but not ours.
🥔 8. Old Dutch Chips
- Ownership: 🇺🇸 Old Dutch Foods Inc. (USA)
- CANADA Score: 6/10
The Backstory: A long-time snack staple in Canada, especially the west.
What’s Canadian: Manufacturing in Winnipeg and Calgary, Canadian potatoes.
What’s Not: U.S.-based ownership and profits.
Bottom Line: Looks local, but it’s a cross-border brand.
🥜 9. Kraft Peanut Butter
- Ownership: 🇺🇸 Kraft Heinz
- CANADA Score: 5/10
The Backstory: An iconic brand with the green jar and teddy bears, but now part of Kraft Heinz.
What’s Canadian: Still produced in Quebec.
What’s Not: Fully U.S.-owned and directed.
Bottom Line: A beloved staple—but American controlled.
🥛 10. Beatrice Dairy
- Ownership: 🇫🇷 Lactalis Group (France)
- CANADA Score: 6/10
The Backstory: Ontario-born in 1898, now owned by France’s Lactalis via Parmalat.
What’s Canadian: Canadian milk under supply management. Domestic production.
What’s Not: Ownership and corporate profits.
Bottom Line: You’re buying Canadian milk—but funding a French multinational.
🍟 Bonus: Cavendish Farms (Frozen Potatoes)
- Ownership: 🇨🇦 J.D. Irving Limited (Canada)
- CANADA Score: 9/10
The Backstory: A rare success story—many think it’s American due to its scale, but it’s a Canadian family-run giant.
What’s Canadian: Owned, sourced, and processed in Canada using potatoes from PEI and NB.
What’s Not: Very little. Truly Canadian.
Bottom Line: Big, national, and proudly local.
Surprised? You’re not alone. But that’s not by accident. Most of these brands know exactly what they’re doing—maple leaves, bilingual labels, and emotional advertising designed to feel local. It’s effective.
Still, none of these brands scored a 1 or 2. Many do employ Canadians, manufacture domestically, or use local ingredients. That nuance is why The CANADA List exists—to cut through the symbols and tell the full story using our CANADA Score framework based on four pillars: ownership, manufacturing, sourcing, and job creation.
So: consult the list. Buy with awareness. And support the economy that surrounds you.
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