Bringing home the (Canadian) bacon
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (340081)
Rockingham, Australia
August 18, 2018 4:02am CST
I responded to a discussion by @topffer who said he’d been to Spain from France to buy up on some items which are cheaper there. It reminded me that Vince brought home some bacon a few days ago that has come from Canada. We live in Western Australia.
According to the butcher in the shop, it is shipped over then salted and pumped full of water (so they’re not paying freight on water). Vince could have bought Australian bacon at $25 a kilo (2.2 pounds). The Canadian bacon was $12 a kilo so in this instance we didn’t buy local although we normally try to. I have no idea why Canadian bacon is so much cheaper. It just seems crazy to me.
I know many of you will have seen this photo before but I can’t resist putting it up again. The image is free to use.
20 people like this
21 responses
@moffittjc (121589)
• Gainesville, Florida
18 Aug 18
It is hard to believe that shipping that Canadian bacon halfway around the world would still be cheaper than the cost of local Australian bacon. I often ponder the same thing here in the US, about products that are manufactured in China and shipped to the US for sale. I would think that it would be cheaper to produce in our own country than to ship it from around the world. But I guess I'm wrong on that.
Anyway, I love bacon, so as much as I would like to shop locally, if I found Canadian bacon to be much cheaper than our own local bacon, I would have chosen the Canadian bacon as well!
4 people like this
@moffittjc (121589)
• Gainesville, Florida
19 Aug 18
@JudyEv Whether it's cheap stuff or expensive stuff, bacon always tastes great!
3 people like this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
19 Aug 18
@moffittjc with each country now trying to raise import tariffs and other such taxes, local produce will be cheaper. I am not sure whether increased protectionism is good for world trade or not, though!
4 people like this
I wonder sometimes if they did not forgot to pay the transport of some goods...
@1hopefulman (45120)
• Canada
18 Aug 18
That is amazing that it's cheaper and so much cheaper than the local one. How was the taste?
2 people like this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
19 Aug 18
@1hopefulman heavy government support and may be lower labour costs could be the reason.
2 people like this
@1hopefulman (45120)
• Canada
19 Aug 18
@JudyEv Could be that we have a lot of pigs here! 
2 people like this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
26 Aug 18
@bluesa products from certain countries are cheaper because of :
A)High subsidies on certain products from their own state (Province) or central governments.
B)Low labour cost incurred on products in the country exporting the product- applicable for China/India and now Bangladesh (In textiles) to a great extent.
C)Currency exchange rate, and depreciation. For e.g- Indian rupee is sliding below 70 mark.
1 US Dollar= 55 Rupees compared to 1 US Dollar = 70 Rupees - this is unfavorable for Indian importers, but could be favorable for American importers(if certain Mr. Donald Trump does not interfere too much!)
2 people like this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
19 Aug 18
@JudyEv governments sometimes give added benefits to the domestic farmers due to lobby pressures or due to the votes factors. And this is common- be a developing nation like India or developed nations like Canada, UK etc.
2 people like this
@KrauseHome (36448)
• United States
26 Aug 18
It is interesting sometimes how something from one area is cheaper than something closer to you. Was the Bacon as good?
2 people like this
@JudyEv (340081)
• Rockingham, Australia
26 Aug 18
It was very nice bacon but has come from the other side of the world. I can't work out how it can be so much cheaper.
@wolfgirl569 (106323)
• Marion, Ohio
18 Aug 18
That is a big difference in price. I would have bought the canadian bacon too.
2 people like this
@Freelanzer (10743)
• Canada
18 Aug 18
Canadian bacon means different things to those in Canada and the UK and those outside Canada. Does the bacon he bought look like regular bacon? What we refer to here as Canadian bacon looks more like sliced ham and it is round so it is distinctively Canadian bacon. But bacon exported is processed similarly to the conventional bacon and looks like it (strips) and is also referred to by as Canadian bacon by other countries. I guess which ever way you "slice" it is "Canadian" bacon when it comes from Canada.
2 people like this
@JamesHxstatic (29413)
• Eugene, Oregon
22 Aug 18
Never saw that photo before! Funny! What a strange difference in price. I wonder why Australian bacon is so high? I stopped eating bacon about three or four years ago.
2 people like this
@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
18 Aug 18
Only 2.2 pounds and $25? I guess that's Aussie dollars so I don't know the exchange rate with US. That's seems high.
2 people like this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
19 Aug 18
May be the Canadian Government heavily subsidizes the Bacon producing farmers!
1 person likes this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
25 Aug 18
@JudyEv Aussie government does not give subsidies?
1 person likes this
@ptrikha_2 (46955)
• India
26 Aug 18
@JudyEv Yes extra tax in name of anti-dumping duty or anti-monopoly duty or countervailing tax or other N number of names.
1 person likes this
@arthurchappell (44998)
• Preston, England
20 Sep 18
that is a great photo to use
1 person likes this
@arthurchappell (44998)
• Preston, England
20 Sep 18
@JudyEv quite a dangerous moment too - a pig that big could be quite unpredictable
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (340081)
• Rockingham, Australia
21 Sep 18
@arthurchappell They do make quite good pets - and they can't help their looks!
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (340081)
• Rockingham, Australia
18 Sep 18
I don't know why we're not paying more attention to providing our own stuff. Who knows what will happen in the future? We may not always be able to get what we want from other countries but we won't have the wherewithal to produce it ourselves.
1 person likes this
@Inlemay (17713)
• South Africa
20 Sep 18
@JudyEv its all about commerce - We have the best corn and other produce, we export it and then we import substandard quality for our own use. I have a friend that has just gone into International Import and Export and the story he tells - well to be quite frank, all about commerce! MONEY
1 person likes this
