I stumbled across something yesterday that sounded almost too good to be true.
The claim was that every Canadian province except Alberta had banned American companies from government contracts.
Nine against one.
Great headline.
One small problem.
It isn’t true.
At least not the way it’s being presented.
So I started digging.
And damn if the real story isn’t more interesting.
Because Canadian governments are doing something that doesn’t get nearly the attention tariffs get.
They’re starting to use the chequebook.
Think about that for a minute.
Every year our governments spend enormous amounts of money buying everything from software and vehicles to construction services, medical equipment, office supplies and God knows what else.
That’s taxpayer money.
Our money.
And increasingly, provinces are asking a pretty simple question:
Why shouldn’t more of it stay here?
Ontario isn’t fooling around
Ontario now has a Buy Ontario Procurement Directive covering provincial ministries, agencies and much of the broader public sector.
And this one really does have teeth.
Ontario’s directive says covered government and public-sector entities must exclude businesses meeting its definition of a U.S. business from new procurements, although there are exceptions… for example, when the American supplier is the only viable source and the purchase can’t wait.
Ontario is also giving preference to Ontario and Canadian businesses at various procurement levels.
That’s not somebody waving a Canadian flag at a press conference.
That’s procurement policy.
That’s money.
And money tends to get people’s attention.
British Columbia went after existing contracts too
Here in B.C., the government didn’t stop at asking who gets the next contract.
Premier David Eby directed ministries, health authorities and core Crown corporations to review their existing contracts with American companies and look for opportunities to move away from U.S. suppliers.
Where viable, B.C. wants those contracts shifted elsewhere.
Canadian companies first.
Trusted trading partners where necessary.
American dependence reduced.
That strikes me as considerably more important than whether somebody removed a bottle of California wine from a government reception.
We’re talking about changing long-term purchasing relationships.
Nova Scotia made its position pretty damn clear
Nova Scotia announced in March 2025 that American businesses could no longer bid on provincial business as part of its response to U.S. tariffs.
The province also began looking at cancelling existing contracts.
Newfoundland and Labrador took a somewhat different approach, saying it would review and stop U.S. procurement where possible.
Those last two words matter.
“Where possible” isn’t a ban.
It’s a direction.
And that’s exactly why I didn’t run with the original claim that nine provinces had simply banned American companies.
The details matter.
Manitoba just took another step
Manitoba’s Buy Canadian Act came into force July 1, 2026.
Then, beginning September 14, Manitoba started implementing its Buy Manitoban Buy Canadian procurement policy.
The idea is pretty straightforward.
Give Manitoba and Canadian suppliers greater opportunities when the government spends public money.
Canadian vendors.
Canadian goods and services.
Canadian construction materials.
And Manitoba says the policy will expand progressively through government departments, agencies and the broader public sector.
Once again, this isn’t about putting a maple leaf sticker on the procurement office.
It’s about deciding where the money goes.
Saskatchewan is an interesting case
Saskatchewan doesn’t fit neatly into the “ban America” headline either.
But look at its numbers.
The Saskatchewan government reported in 2025 that nearly 90% of its procurement had gone to Saskatchewan companies over the previous five years.
More than 99% went to Canadian companies.
Less than 1% went to U.S. companies.
So I’m not going to yell at Saskatchewan because it doesn’t have the right wording on a piece of paper.
If more than 99 cents of every procurement dollar is already landing with Canadian companies, I think we can safely say somebody got the memo.
And that’s when the bigger picture finally clicked for me.
This isn’t really about punishing America
That’s the mistake I think we’re making when we look at these policies only through the Trump trade-war lens.
Retaliation may have started some of this.
But there’s a much bigger opportunity here.
Build Canadian capacity.
If Canadian governments buy Canadian software, Canadian steel, Canadian vehicles, Canadian technology, Canadian construction services and Canadian manufactured goods, somebody has to supply them.
Companies grow.
Factories get orders.
Workers get hired.
Supply chains develop.
Investment becomes easier to justify.
And suddenly “Buy Canadian” isn’t a slogan on Facebook.
It’s industrial policy.
This fits directly into something I’ve been writing about for months…
We Can Build It Here.
Not everything.
I’m not suggesting we dig a moat around Canada and manufacture every computer chip, banana and left-handed screwdriver ourselves.
Trade matters.
The United States will remain an important customer and supplier.
But there’s a hell of a difference between trading with somebody and becoming so dependent on them that they can threaten to turn off the tap whenever their politics go sideways.
Canada learned that lesson the expensive way.
Here’s what changed for me
I started researching this because somebody claimed nine Canadian provinces had banned American companies.
I expected either to confirm it or shoot it down.
I shot it down.
But underneath the exaggeration I found something better.
Ontario is restricting defined U.S. businesses.
B.C. is reviewing American contracts.
Nova Scotia restricted American access to provincial procurement.
Newfoundland and Labrador said stop American procurement where possible.
Manitoba has legislated Buy Canadian purchasing and is rolling out a new preference policy.
Saskatchewan was already sending more than 99% of its procurement to Canadian companies in the period it reported.
The rules aren’t identical.
They shouldn’t be described as identical.
But the direction is hard to miss.
Canada spent decades worrying about whether Washington would buy what we produced.
Maybe it’s time we paid a little more attention to what we’re buying ourselves.
Because governments don’t just make speeches.
They buy things.
Lots of things.
And every time Canada writes one of those cheques, we get to decide whose economy we’re helping build.
I know which one I’d like to start with.
Ours.
The Recap…
I went looking to verify a viral claim that nine Canadian provinces had banned American companies.
It wasn’t true.
What I found was better.
Across Canada, governments are increasingly using billions in public purchasing power to favour Canadian businesses, Canadian workers and Canadian supply chains.
Canada doesn’t just have tariffs in the toolbox.
We have a chequebook.
The Gut-Punch…
For decades we asked:
Will America buy Canadian?
Maybe the more important question now is:
Will Canada?
Source credit
Government of Ontario… Buy Ontario Procurement Directive
Government of British Columbia… Premier directs government to cancel American contracts wherever viable
Government of Nova Scotia… Statement on U.S. Tariffs
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador… Statement from the Premier in Response to U.S. Tariffs
Government of Manitoba… Buy Manitoban Buy Canadian Policy and Buy Canadian Act
Government of Saskatchewan… Government Procurement 90 Per Cent from Saskatchewan; 99 Per Cent Canadian
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Excellent that we can use our chequebook and not our "checkbook" had we become "the cherished 51st state." :)
But seriously, why is Alberta an outlier on so many issues? I can never take Danielle Smith seriously. She strikes me as the embodiment of the "Maple MAGA."
A thought-provoking article, Fred, as usual. Elbows up!
Fred, the accolades to Ontario are not well deserved. They may claim to support Canadian companies but they have absolutely shafted Canadian window and glazing manufacturers by specifying American companies on their bidders list for the Ottawa Hospital Campus Development. Furthermore, they awarded a large contract to an American glazing company who manufacture in Mexico, with no Canadian content, for the windows on the Trillium M Hospital project in Mississauga. There are dozens of qualified manufacturers and glazing contractors in Ontario who are capable of fulfilling the project requirements for both hospitals. If the Ontario government was truly supportive of "Buy Canadian" they would remove the names of approved foreign products from project bidders lists and would never ever award a contract to an American contractor who is stealing work and jobs from Ontario residents.