New website rates how “Canadian” products are and points shoppers to alternatives

The Story

Canadians looking to buy domestically made goods often face a complicated mix of labels, ownership details and supply-chain claims, but a new website aims to make comparisons easier. trycanadian.ca was created by Tomáš Švec after he identified a gap in tools that help shoppers determine whether products are truly Canadian or simply marketed that way.

The site is built around a straightforward concept: it tells shoppers how “Canadian” a product is—whether that description fits the corporate ownership, headquarters location and where products are made. According to Švec, the website also offers Canadian alternatives to the companies behind products.

Švec said he began working on the project after noticing only a few resources that covered this kind of information. He described a desire to do better by creating a single place where shoppers could see relevant corporate and manufacturing details laid out in an easy-to-read format.

In its current form, the website lists roughly 600 to 700 U.S. companies and matches them with Canadian counterparts. Švec said he is adding about 40 companies every day, a pace that depends on researching factors such as company ownership, founding and headquarters locations, and where products are produced.

The focus on ownership and production locations addresses a key challenge shoppers encounter when using other “buy Canadian” tools. Švec noted that many apps designed to encourage domestic purchasing use different criteria—some focus only on where an item is made, while others consider factors such as ownership, ingredient sourcing, and where money goes.

That variety of approaches can lead to shoppers receiving different answers about the same product, depending on which tool they consult. By consolidating multiple details and pairing products with alternative Canadian options, the website is intended to reduce that confusion rather than replace a shopper’s judgement.

Švec said the site is not meant to direct people on what to buy. Instead, he described the platform as a way to lay out information in a way that makes choosing Canadian products easier.

To illustrate how the site works, Švec pointed to an example of a product that claims to use 100 per cent Canadian mustard seeds. He said that when you check the producer, the company is American, and the site shows Canadian alternatives.

The website is also positioned as accessible for a broad audience. Švec said it accepts donations but that it will remain free and available to everyone, reflecting his goal that shoppers can access the information without paywalls.