The Competition Bureau has reached an agreement with Empire Co. Ltd. that will prevent the Sobeys parent from enforcing certain property controls that can restrict competitors from opening or expanding grocery stores in Canada.
The agreement, registered with the Competition Tribunal as a consent agreement, makes commitments announced by Empire in July legally binding and enforceable. Empire owns multiple grocery banners, including Sobeys, Farm Boy, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Marché Bonichoix and Les Marchés Tradition.
Empire agrees to changes to property controls
Under the agreement, Empire will no longer enforce existing restrictive covenants, enter into new restrictive covenants or ask other parties to establish restrictive covenants that benefit the company. It will also limit its use of exclusivity clauses.
The Competition Bureau says property controls in the grocery sector can restrict how commercial real estate is used to sell food products. According to the bureau, those controls can make it difficult or impossible for businesses to open new stores or sell certain products and can reduce competition in local markets.
The bureau said the agreement is intended to provide greater certainty for businesses and property owners seeking to enter or expand in the food retail sector. Businesses, property owners and other interested parties that want a property control formally removed can contact Empire.
“The agreement with Empire removes barriers to competition and will support new entry and increased competition from retailers selling everyday essential items. The Bureau is committed to identifying and addressing barriers that limit competition across the food supply chain so that Canadians see the benefits of competition in the form of lower prices, greater choice and increased innovation,” said Jeanne Pratt, interim commissioner of competition, said in a news release.
Investigation of other grocers continues
The agreement follows the Competition Bureau’s earlier work examining the use of property controls in the grocery industry. The bureau published a grocery market study in June 2023 that concluded property controls can limit competition from new grocers and prevent consumers from receiving potential benefits associated with competition, including lower prices, greater choice and increased innovation.
In June 2025, the bureau published guidance on competitor property controls. That same month, it announced that it was monitoring Loblaw’s commitment to end its use of property controls in Canada.
The bureau said its investigation into the use of property controls by other grocers remains ongoing and that it continues to monitor the industry.
The agency also launched an examination in June 2026 of competition across Canada’s food supply chain, covering potential competition issues in production and processing, transportation and distribution, and retail pricing practices.
Consent agreements registered with the Competition Tribunal are legally binding and enforceable and have the force and effect of a court order.
The Competition Bureau said the Empire agreement reflects changes to how the company uses property controls in the Canadian grocery sector while its broader examination of competition in the food supply chain continues.
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