I’ve been doing the ‘buy Canadian’ thing for a few years now. I actually enjoy the game of trying to find cool folks making cool stuff and I know that there are others like me just like there are people who lack the time or inclination to do the research.

I also think it can be tricky for people looking at starting a business to be able to identify a need.

So what’s a product you don’t know of a Canadian alternative to?

Personally, it’s cast iron cookware. Meyer makes great stainless stuff, but there isn’t a single foundry making cast iron cookware in Canada. I’ve actually started emailing a few to see if I can find a Canadian foundry that would be willing to batch produce cast iron skillets. Finding a local brand already doing it would be a LOT easier!

  • StillPaisleyCat@startrek.website
    7·
    21 days ago

    There are, or at least were, Canadian cast iron makers.

    Unfortunately, they seem to rely on Facebook.

    See: https://castironcanada.com/

    Also, it’s not clear which of these businesses are actually still operating. For example, Bristol Iron Works in Huntsville ON has a danger flagged website and a FB page that hasn’t been updated in years.

    • Encephalotrocity@biglemmowski.winEnglish
      2·
      19 days ago

      I emailed the company asking what’s up and this is the response I received (not verbatim as I redacted some non-relevant information):

      Yes the website is down because we are reorganizing our business.

      We did custom direct orders but have discontinued Made in Ontario cast iron. We used a foundry to pour the actual product but all finishing and seasoning was done by us. During the end of Covid foundries only wanted to handle multi million dollar accounts. So we made the decision stop producing Canadian made cast iron.

      My husband is continuing the custom iron works.

      Hope you understand.

      Cheers Beth Bristow

      Bristow Iron Works

      • StillPaisleyCat@startrek.website
        2·
        19 days ago

        Good to know.

        Perhaps the major changes in the market might lead to some of the foundries rethinking their willingness to do smaller runs.

        There are so many Canadian small producers that have stopped producing as manufacturing moved south for economies of scale…