New York, Aug 29 - Wal-Mart Stores Inc said on Friday it would cut prices on bread, milk, butter and eggs in its Ontario stores as part of a wider campaign of reductions to help shoppers in a tough economy.
Wal-Mart Canada cut hundreds of prices on goods in August and plans to reduce hundreds more in September.
The discount retailer said price cuts on staple food items may be the best way to soothe spending worries for hard-hit consumers.
"We know that these items are on virtually every customer's shopping list," said Vi Konkle, Wal-Mart Canada's chief customer officer, in a statement.
Wal-Mart Canada operates 309 outlets nationwide, about one-third of them in Ontario, and employs some 77,000 people.
The price cuts in Ontario stores come as parents face an expensive back-to-school period and a weak local economy, and as shoppers seek low prices on necessities like food, the company said.
"With looming back-to-school costs, gas-pump woes, food-price hikes, and a struggling provincial economy, times are tough for many of our Ontario customers," Konkle said.
As food prices rise, shoppers are trying to stretch their dollars by buying cheaper store-brand products, avoiding costly cuts of meat, consolidating trips, clipping coupons, and constructing well-researched shopping lists.
To lure shoppers into its stores, Wal-Mart has touted its low prices and selectively cut prices in its food aisles.