Grocery store receipt scanners aren’t problematic but point to larger issues in Canada.
Supermarket chain Loblaws is facing backlash after implementing receipt scanners at four of its locations. Customers who use self-checkout machines at these locations must use the new devices to scan their receipts’ barcodes to be able to exit the store.
The many shoppers expressing outrage over this new anti-theft measure are exaggerating the inconvenience it will pose.
Although it’s not overly common, checking receipts at a grocery store as an exit ticket isn’t a novel idea. Costco stations employees at its exits to the items in customers’ carts match those on their receipts. The scanners at Loblaws don’t even encode the purchases on shoppers’ receipts; they just ensure people aren’t leaving without having paid for anything, so they can’t be said to invade privacy.
Receipt scanners shouldn’t pose difficulty in of accessibility either, so long as they’re installed at an appropriate height. They require just as much exertion as push buttons on doors.
The greatest threat receipt scanners pose is loud beeping at confused customers and those who may be technologically challenged and try exiting without using the machines.
Rising food prices are the true threat.
Shoplifting, particularly at self-checkout machines, is a growing problem against which Loblaws presumably and understandably hopes to defend itself. Yet the increase in grocery theft corresponds to increased food insecurity.
As many consumers and businesses struggle to keep their heads above water recovering from COVID-19, it’s difficult to sympathize with the supermarket giant floating by on $529 million in profits earned in a single quarter.
Canada allows monopolies in too many of its industries—air travel, telecommunications, grocery chains, and more. Although increased theft and inflation contribute to higher food prices, Loblaws is also more expensive than comparable stores. It’s more than plausible the chain raises its own prices to maximize its profits and can do so because of a lack of competition.
Loblaws and food insecurity pose far greater danger to the public than do receipt scanners.
—Journal Editorial Board
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