In March 2026, the Toronto city council approved a municipal grocery store pilot in four communities to address issues of food access and high food costs. The proposal is one of several recent responses to the growing push for “publicly owned and operated” grocery store alternatives.
Other notable examples include New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plans for five municipal grocery stores during his election campaign. The idea has since spread north: NDP Leader Avi Lewis proposed a national strategy to bring public grocery stores to communities across Canada.
