The Big Bonus Day is back at Canadian Tire! On Saturday, March 12, 2016 you can collect 20X bonus e-Canadian Tire Money! Get this deal by simply showing your My Canadian Tire Money Card at checkout and get 8% e-CT tire money back. Plus, if you pay for your purchase with your Canadian Tire Options MasterCard or Options World MasterCard, you can collect 30X the e-Canadian Tire money (that’s 12% back)!
Click here to view the Canadian Tire flyer.
Nestlé Canada has issued a voluntary recall for two of its Delissio frozen pizzas due to potential pieces of small glass being found in the pizzas. The recall affects two of its pizzas: the Pizzeria Vintage Tuscan-Style Chicken Pizza and the Thin Crispy Crust Grilled Chicken Tomato & Spinach Pizza. This recall doesn’t affect other Delissio products.
The recall in Canada was issued because of a recall in America. A few American customers contacted Nestlé after finding tiny pieces of glass in their pizza; it’s believed that the glass was found in the spinach, which is on both kinds of pizza. There have been no reports of glass in Canada; however, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is conducting a thorough investigation, which could possibly lead to other recalled food products.
If you bought a Delissio pizza, please check to see if you have the recalled products. If you happen to have either one, do not consume it and contact Nestlé Canada Consumer Services for reimbursement at 1-855-395-1238.
Click here for more information on this recall!
EQ Bank Canada, the digital bank that offers a 3% interest rate, has been experiencing high levels of inquiries for the past three months and has finally decided to limit the number of sign ups so that it can process current accounts. The bank was a huge hit since January 2016 and as the number of people signing up increased, users started complaining that it sometimes took weeks for their accounts to be processed.
Some of the features from EQ Bank include no minimum balance to maintain, no monthly charges, unlimited day-to-day transactions, and 5 free Interac e-Transfers. The 3% interest rate is 3x higher than that of traditional Canadian banks but we’re unsure how long it will last as its subject to change.
“Over the next few weeks, we will be focused on bringing on new customer service staff, improving sign-up processes and making sure we are meeting every customer’s expectations. In order to deliver on this promise, we will temporarily invite a select number of new customers to sign up each week.” As EQ Bank stated on their website.
If you want to put your money into the EQ Bank, you’ll have to reserve your spot. It’s unknown how many people EQ Bank will select each week and how long this process will last but we suggest you reserve now before the list gets too long!
Click here for more information on EQ Bank accounts.
GoGo squeeZ is under fire since it announced this week that it was issuing a voluntary recall due to food product residue being found in two of its product pumps in its Traverse City factory. The discovery was made during an inspection by the Michigan State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The specific product being recalled is its GoGo squeeZ Applesauce and until the food product residue issue gets fixed, the factory will not begin production. The CEO, Michel Larroche, left a lengthy post on Facebook apologizing for the recall stating, “…[O]ur team takes food safety matters very seriously, so in an abundance of caution, we are recalling products. We are so sorry that this happened. We have worked hard to earn your trust, and we are taking action to make sure we continue to deserve it. As a part of this commitment Bill Graham, our President, and I will be intimately involved in making the changes necessary to deliver on our promise.”
So far, there have been no reported cases of illness; however, if you purchased non-organic GoGo squeeZ Applesauce pouches with the Best Before Dates between December 4, 2015 and March 4, 2017 you should stop eating them and visit the GoGo squeeZ website to request a coupon voucher.
Click here for more details on this GoGo squeeZ recall.
Although it isn’t known just yet what form it will eventually take or who will be eligible, a basic income “pilot project” is confirmed to be in the works for residents of Ontario. The measures, which could take effect later this year, would provide a certain amount of money to eligible citizens meant to cover monthly expenses without the added scrutiny and regulation typical of such government “handouts” in the past.
Some visions for the basic income program have it replacing welfare, unemployment insurance, and Old Age Security altogether; or, to put it more accurately, rolling them all up into one lump sum payment.
A similar program from the 1970s orchestrated in Manitoba found that, contrary to conservative doctrine on welfare and social safety nets, allowing the working poor to top off their incomes to acceptable, reasonable levels did not provide a disincentive for them to keep working, even though it included senior citizens and the disabled. In fact, any decrease in the workforce was owed to a proportional increase in the student population while poverty was virtually eliminated.
For political reasons, the experiment was shelved not long after it began. But other countries around the world have dabbled with a basic income—and succeeded.
According to Chris Weller of Tech Insider, Canada may be the perfect test subject for wide scale basic income adoption. “In a country like Canada, where healthcare and retirement savings are already highly socialized, it isn’t farfetched to think a steady income paid for by the taxpayers could roll out smoothly,” Weller notes. What do you think?
Could you use a little extra income?
Competition is never a bad thing for consumers. And when it comes to telecom providers, the amount of choice available to consumers (and therefore competition between networks) has been woefully minimal for as long as we can remember. Well, according to this campaign from Open Media, if Rogers and other giants of the wireless spectrum have their way, that’s the way it’s going to be for a long, long time.
Open Media is a non-partisan nonprofit organization built to advocate for and protect internet-specific legislation. One of their main projects is making sure that consumers know how much better the internet can be when it is truly free: unfettered by preferential corporate backroom deals, and totally accessible by global cultures. Their Stop the Slow Down and No Fake Internet campaigns had, and continue to have, a great deal of influence on how everyday people view the policies being put into place behind the scenes. And so when it comes to their Stop Blocking New Providers initiative, we’d do well to listen up.
The cellular network industry can be complex, with infrastructure and carrier agreements requiring a few law degrees to get through in one piece, but here’s the short version: Sugar Mobile is an upstart cell service provider that uses a combination of Wi-Fi and roaming on a variety of other carriers to provide a network to its customers. Byzantine agreements between large carriers and MVNOs (smaller companies, like Sugar, that merely “rent” space off of other companies’ towers) stipulate, well, lots of things that we are simply not privy to. In this case, Rogers (and now Bell) are stamping their feet about letting this particular little guy play on their network. According to Open Media, the reasoning for that is absurd.
In a country whose buffet of cellular options just got a little bit smaller, critics of Rogers see this stand as a way of further decreasing affordable competition in the mobile space. (Sugar Mobile has plans for just $19/mo.) Even proponents of the major telecom’s position would admit that using Sugar’s unique Wi-Fi concept (thus being even less burdensome to the network, by the way) to disqualify them from the rules already set out by CRTC allowing “legitimate MVNOs” is, at best, exploiting a technicality.
Whatever the CRTC decides, though, the chances are good that Rogers and the other big boys won’t come out smelling like a rose. They never seem to.
OpenMedia’s deadline to submit a policy recommendation is March 17. You can find out more here.
Groupe Marcelle Inc. recalls Marcelle Instant Eye Makeup Remover Pads. Quality control inspections discovered that some Marcelle instant eye makeup remover pads may be contaminated with mould. There have been no reports of injuries or incidents.
If you have this product (lot numbers (L)15J1394, (L)15K1394 and (L)15L1394) you can return or exchange it by contacting Groupe Marcelle Inc. Approximately 23,050 were sold in Canada between December 9, 2015 and February 15, 2016.
Click here for more information on Marcelle’s recall.
Recall from L’Oréal! L’Oréal’s recalls Ideal Moisture Dry and Sensitive Day cream with the lot number 20K609. It was recalled due to risks of allergic reactions & skin irritation as a result of high concentration level of methylisothiazolinone (MI). This product has been in the market for approximately three years between July 2013 and February 2016 and 57,447 products were sold. There were no reported injuries but if you have this item, stop using it and return it to the place of purchase for a refund.
Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled cosmetics and return it to the place of purchase for a refund.
Click here for more information on this L’Oréal recall.
Its been a long (and snowy) week but I’ve got something to make you feel better: Cinnabon Canada’s awesome coupons are back! Coupons for FREE Minibon made with Nutella with any drink purchase as well as 50% off of Large Take Home CinnaPacks.
Coupons will be posted on March 7th 2016 and expire on April 3rd 2016. They are valid at all Canadian locations except OnRoute & Flying J Highway Travel Centres. Printed coupons are required to receive offers.
Now who knew you’d be looking forward to Monday!
Click here for more information on Cinnabon’s coupons.
Across the southern border, millions of Americans are gaining access to legal marijuana for the first time in decades. Though it remains illegal at the federal level, having been classified in 1970 as a “Schedule 1 substance”, most states now have legalized some form of marijuana, and many will vote on additional deregulation this year. Although the US government’s official stance on cannabis is that it is both highly addictive and without any medicinal value, that view has not been credible for ages, if indeed it ever was. Enforcement of cannabis laws in the US, as in Canada, has been quite sporadic of late.
Here in Canada, though, the conflict around marijuana sales is a little different. Instead of worrying about arbitrary borders turning a legal medicine into a felony offense, Canadians are facing a more traditional consumer’s dilemma: “Which stores should we patronize?”
Although Prime Minister Trudeau and his Liberal party have vowed to legalize cannabis for recreational use, that legislation is still in its infancy. In the meantime, so-called “compassion clubs” are continuing to operate in a quasi-legal, deregulated market that allows expansive product lines and minimal markups that the burgeoning legal cannabis industry simply can’t match. And dispensary operators are taking notice.
Licensed producers, who distribute marijuana by mail, note they must comply with rules set by the former Conservative government, increasing their relative costs.
“We’re basically competing against a store that buys their product from whoever is growing it in their basement,” said Denis Arsenault, CEO of producer OrganiGram.
While established, unlicensed clubs set up storefronts with physical displays and helpful neighborhood “budtenders” at minimal risk of legal repercussions, the corporate competition is, for now, limited to mail order shipments of dried herb. In 2014, HuffPo profiled CALM, a Toronto-area club, whose proprietors were unconcerned about the influx of rubber-stamped competition on the horizon. Their status as medicinal marijuana trailblazers (having opened for business in 1996) would set them apart, they said.
The Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries has laid out a code of conduct for its members that includes requirements to obtain medical documents (not necessarily from Health Canada), enact quality control measures and manage inventory effectively, among other standards.
“We’ve been just kind of waiting for Health Canada to do the kind of system that we can take part in and that will help our members. We’re still waiting for that,” said Jamie Shaw, one of the board members of the group.
Today, CALM is still waiting. But some customers are beginning to get impatient.
Dollarama Canada has recalled its Wooden Easy-Grab Puzzles for a choking hazard! The three-piece puzzle themes that are being recalled are the farm, garden, ocean (pictured above), and jungle themes. The China-manufactured puzzles have wooden knobs on them for easy pick up; however, Dollarama received a report of a knob detaching from the puzzle piece and have therefore issued the recall.
There have been approximately 23,952 puzzles sold in Canada between June 2015 and January 2016. There have been no reports of injuries but if you purchased one of these toys be sure to take the puzzle away and return it Dollarama for a refund (no receipt necessary). Keep in mind that the puzzle pieces with a metal peg at the back are not part of the recall.
Click here to read more about the recall from Dollarama Canada.
The new, cheaper options for cable subscribers have been revealed this week, and many customers are less than thrilled with what their $25 (or thereabouts) will get them. What seemed like a godsend when it was announced last year has, in preliminary reviews, turned into a bit of a boondoggle—many people are finding that their bills will go up, not down, if they opt in to the new “basic” packages, as the most in-demand channels are frequently spread across multiple small bundles. And as the CBC pointed out, many critics of the new rules foresaw this problem before any plans were even announced:
Some critics of the new regime say consumers may end up paying more for fewer choices, depending on how the cable companies bundle and price individual channels or packages of channels.
And some specialty broadcasters worry they’ll be left out in the cold if their signals aren’t bundled with popular or must-have choices.
On top of that, the $25/month minimum plan does not include hardware, which for some providers is required technology. Rogers customers, for instance, will need to add a $12.95 monthly fee for rental of their “Nextbox”. Bell subscribers will have to meet a significant minimum monthly cost in order to have their $15/month PVR fee waived, though there is the option of purchasing the unit at a cost of $499.
Worse yet are the one-time installation fees and lengthy contracts, which will lock customers in to specific plans for up to 2 years. Some providers are even requiring a bundled internet package. All these costs add up to hefty final bills, and customers who were hoping these additional regulations would offer reasons to keep the cord un-cut are being forced to reconsider their options.
Cable companies won’t necessarily have to offer “pick-and-pay”, or a la carte options until December. Until then, there’s always Netflix, Hulu, and the old fashioned antenna.
When Heinz made its exit from Leamington, Ontario in 2013-14, a town that had come to depend upon and identify with the iconic ketchup brand felt as if their collective heart had been ripped out of their chest.
Back then, the plan was unclear: after a takeover of the entire H.J. Heinz Co. by an investment group led by eccentric billionaires Warren Buffet and Jorge Paulo Lemann, jobs would be ritually gutted month-by-month, wages slashed, and investments culled. Those employees that stuck around would hope to be hired on by the usurping company, but any futures there were far from guaranteed. Across the county, farmers assumed their years of service had come to and end; sadly, many of them were right on the money.
But in June of 2014, the Highbury Canco Corp. took over the old Heinz building, and they evidently weren’t satisfied with becoming caretakers of an undead operation. Highbury signed a contract with French’s and began production of a new product line. It was ketchup of course, but with a catch: those Leamington tomatoes that Heinz left behind would be front and center for French’s take on the classic condiment. Once again, a huge company was making a big investment in the local community; it just happened to be a different name on the bottle.
Canadians everywhere were quick to notice. A viral Facebook post from a construction worker in Orillia sparked an organic awareness campaign urging consumers to support local industry. Back in his hometown, stores couldn’t keep the French’s ketchup on the shelves.
For their part, French’s has already moved to capitalize on the wildfire success. They’ve tripled their tomato paste order from Highbury Canco already, and are in discussion to bring even more tomato production and manufacturing to the Leamington area with an expanded product line. Today, negotiations between farmers and purchasers on the price of tomatoes begin, and it couldn’t come at a better time for Ontario.
“We think that Leamington tomatoes are great quality,” said French’s president Elliott Penner, pledging to only use local tomatoes in their Canadian products.
Well, Elliott, the feeling is mutual.
StaminaFibre Canada is having their biggest Bedding Warehouse Sale ever! The sale starts on Thursday March 31st 2016 and runs for just 3 days. You will not want to miss this unique opportunity to save as much as 90% off retail price on luxurious pillows, duvets, memory foam mattresses, body pillows, throw cushions, pet beds, sheet sets etc.
The StaminaFibre 3 Day Bedding Warehouse Sale takes place at 310 Watline Avenue, Mississauga, ON. The closest intersection is Hurontario and Highway 401. This sale starts on March 31st and runs through April 2nd, 2016.
The hours of operation are as follows:
Parking and admission are FREE!
Click here for more information on the StaminaFibre Bedding Warehouse Sale.
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