THUNDER BAY — Ten pounds of Canadian potatoes for $1.99, pork loin chops at $2.22 a pound, chicken drumsticks at $2.49 a pound, 99-cent cabbage and squash, and three pounds of Ontario apples for $2.44 are among the strongest grocery values available to Thunder Bay shoppers this week.
NetNewsLedger reviewed the new flyer cycle Wednesday, Sept. 16. Giant Tiger’s sale begins Wednesday, while FreshCo, Safeway, Walmart, Metro and Real Canadian Superstore move to their new flyers Thursday, Sept. 17, with most offers continuing through Wednesday, Sept. 23.
There is also good news for households looking to cook rather than simply collect sale items: many of this week’s lowest-priced foods work together. Pork, potatoes, apples, squash, cabbage, carrots and chicken can be turned into several inexpensive fall meals, and we have added recipes to help shoppers make better use of the specials.
The best Thunder Bay grocery deals at a glance
| Store | Standout buy | Advertised price |
|---|---|---|
| FreshCo | Fresh chicken drumsticks | $2.49/lb |
| FreshCo | Gala apples or seedless oranges | 99¢/lb |
| Safeway | Pork shoulder picnic or blade roast | $3.29/lb |
| Walmart | Gay Lea butter, 454 g | $4.97 |
| Giant Tiger | McIntosh apples, 3 lb | $2.44 |
| Metro | Selection bacon, 375 g | $2.99 |
| Metro | Selected squash | 99¢/lb |
| Superstore | Canadian white potatoes, 10 lb | $1.99 |
| Superstore | Pork loin combination chops | $2.22/lb |
FreshCo’s Thunder Bay store is an important exception to the chain’s Ontario flyer. FreshCo’s standard Ontario flyer excludes Thunder Bay, while the local store has been using the Western Canada pricing edition. The official FreshCo flyer link supplied for this review is location-driven, so shoppers should make sure the Thunder Bay store is selected.
FreshCo: $2.49 chicken drumsticks and a strong fall produce sale
FreshCo has one of the better combinations of meat and seasonal produce this week.
Value-size packages of fresh Compliments chicken drumsticks are $2.49 a pound. Gala apples or seedless oranges are advertised at 99 cents a pound, while cauliflower or seedless cucumbers are $2.99.
The fall harvest page is particularly useful for households making soups, stews and roasted dinners. Green or red cabbage is 99 cents a pound, selected Ontario squash — including acorn, butternut, kabocha and spaghetti squash — is $1.29 a pound, kale is $1.99 a bunch and three-pound bags of yellow onions or carrots are $2.99.
Red sweet bell peppers are $1.99 a pound, while celery is $2.
For the pantry, Unico vegetable oil is advertised at $5.99 for three litres with the applicable Scene+ member offer, compared with $9.99 without it. Carnation evaporated milk is $1.69.
What to buy: Chicken drumsticks, apples or oranges, cabbage, squash and onions are the strongest FreshCo combination.
Stock-up call: Chicken drumsticks can be divided into meal-sized freezer bags. Squash, cabbage and onions also have a much longer usable life than delicate berries or salad greens, making them practical buys for households trying to reduce food waste.
Safeway: Pork roast, apples and oranges offer the best value
Safeway’s Western Canada flyer for Sept. 17 to 23 has fresh pork shoulder picnic roast or blade roast at $3.29 a pound.
Three-pound bags of navel oranges are $3.99, as are three-pound bags of Gala or McIntosh apples. That works out to about $1.33 a pound for either fruit.
Villaggio bread, selected Dempster’s tortillas or Natural Bakery rye bread are $2.97. Taylor Farms salad kits are $4.44 and selected family-size cereals are $5.47.
Fresh lean ground beef is $6.44 a pound, which is considerably more expensive on a per-pound basis than several pork and chicken options in the flyers reviewed this week.
What to buy: Pork shoulder, apples, oranges and bread.
Stock-up call: Pork shoulder is suited to slow cooking and can produce enough meat for multiple meals. Cook once, then use the leftovers for sandwiches, tacos, soup or a rice bowl.
Walmart: Butter and basic vegetables are the better buys
Walmart’s Sept. 17-23 flyer is not the strongest meat flyer in this week’s comparison, but there are useful everyday staples.
Gay Lea butter is $4.97 for 454 grams and Armstrong cheese is $4.98 for selected blocks, shredded cheese or slices.
Three-pound bags of carrots or yellow onions are $2.74, Carnation evaporated milk is $1.74 and sweet potatoes are advertised at $1.24 a pound. Fresh pork back ribs are $3.98 a pound.
Red or green seedless grapes are $3.84 a pound, making Giant Tiger’s apples and FreshCo’s 99-cent fruit considerably easier on the produce budget this week.
What to buy: Butter, onions or carrots and sweet potatoes.
Stock-up call: Butter freezes well. Buying an extra pound makes sense if your household regularly bakes or cooks with butter and already has freezer space.
Giant Tiger: Three pounds of apples for $2.44
Giant Tiger’s Ontario flyer runs from Wednesday, Sept. 16 through Tuesday, Sept. 22.
The standout is a three-pound bag of McIntosh apples for $2.44. That works out to about 81 cents a pound and makes the apples one of the week’s best lunch-box, breakfast and baking values.
Iceberg lettuce is $1.44, Planters peanut butter is $4.97 for one kilogram and Maple Leaf flaked meat is $1.47 for 156 grams.
Janes frozen chicken wings are $6.97 for 660 grams, Aqua Star frozen shrimp is $6.29 for 340 grams and selected Cavendish Farms french fries are $2.69.
What to buy: Apples, lettuce and peanut butter.
Stock-up call: The peanut butter is a useful shelf-stable purchase for households that use it regularly. The apples are cheap enough to use for lunches, oatmeal, baking and savoury dishes with pork.
Metro: $2.99 bacon, pork at $2.99 a pound and 99-cent squash
Metro has a particularly useful flyer for households planning fall comfort food.
Fresh pork side ribs or pork loin chops in economy packs are $2.99 a pound. Boneless, skinless chicken breast value packs are $4.99 a pound, and Selection bacon is $2.99 for 375 grams.
On the produce side, acorn, butternut, buttercup or spaghetti squash is 99 cents a pound. A 2.5-pound package of sweet peppers is $3.99, or about $1.60 a pound.
Celery is $1.99 and 454-gram packages of Campari tomatoes are also $1.99.
Selection cheese bars or shredded cheese are $4.99, while selected Habitant or Campbell’s Chunky soups are $1.99.
What to buy: Bacon, pork, squash, peppers and tomatoes.
Stock-up call: The $2.99 bacon can go directly into the freezer. Peppers can also be sliced and frozen for soups, chili, omelettes and pasta sauce if the full 2.5-pound package will not be used fresh.
Real Canadian Superstore: Ten pounds of potatoes for $1.99
Superstore has one of the most useful staple deals of the week: a 10-pound bag of Canadian white potatoes for $1.99.
That is about 20 cents a pound, making potatoes one of the cheapest ways this week to add substance to soups, stews, breakfasts and main meals.
Pork loin combination chops are $2.22 a pound, while club-size boneless, skinless chicken breasts are $4.88 a pound. Red, orange or yellow sweet peppers are $2 a pound and five-packs of avocados are $2.77.
Robin Hood or Five Roses all-purpose flour is $11.98 for 10 pounds, and Neilson Trutaste four-litre milk is $4.98.
What to buy: Potatoes, pork chops, avocados and peppers.
Stock-up call: The potatoes are the week’s clearest bulk buy if they can be stored properly. Keep them in a cool, dark, well-ventilated location rather than beside onions.
The pork chops are also a freezer candidate. Divide family-sized packs before freezing so you only have to thaw enough for one meal.
Skaf’s Just Basics: New flyer not yet posted Wednesday morning
Skaf’s Just Basics publishes its new specials on Thursdays.
When checked early Wednesday, Sept. 16, the store’s website was still showing the Sept. 10-16 flyer rather than the new Sept. 17 flyer.
For accuracy, NetNewsLedger is not carrying forward last week’s Skaf’s prices and presenting them as new specials.
Thunder Bay shoppers should check the Skaf’s website or Flipp after the new flyer is posted Thursday. The independent Hodder Avenue grocer regularly features produce, meat, canned food, frozen products and pantry staples, and its new prices may change the week’s store-to-store comparisons.
If this article is being read after Thursday’s flyer release, check Skaf’s before making the second stop on your shopping trip.
Superior Seasons: Fall harvest is an ideal time to check local first
Superior Seasons is showing an online-market distribution date of Saturday, Sept. 19. Unlike the supermarket chains, the Thunder Bay online farmers market does not have one universal weekly flyer. Customers select an ordering period and distribution location before the complete available inventory is displayed.
That makes a straight price comparison difficult, but September is an important time to look at the local option.
Superior Seasons lists Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario producers including Belluz Farms in Slate River, Brule Creek Farms in Kakabeka Falls, Breukelman Potato Farm in Slate River, Borderlands Farm in Neebing, Kagiwiosa Manomin in Dinorwic, Root Cellar Gardens in Neebing and many other regional producers.
The marketplace says participating producers that manage their own inventory and pricing can receive up to 90 per cent of the price consumers pay.
For Thunder Bay households, the best way to use Superior Seasons on a budget is to check it before buying foods that are already on the grocery list — particularly potatoes, carrots, squash, greens, eggs, flour, dairy products and other seasonal items.
Buying local is not automatically the cheapest choice. However, late-summer and early-fall availability can provide a good opportunity to compare supermarket prices with food grown much closer to home while keeping more grocery spending in the Northwestern Ontario food economy.
George’s Market: Specials are available by Monday newsletter, not a public flyer
George’s Market continues to promote weekly specials, but its current item-by-item sale prices are not posted on the publicly accessible website.
The independent Balsam Street grocer says its weekly-specials newsletter is delivered by email every Monday morning.
A complete Sept. 14 weekly price list could not be independently verified through the public website, so no George’s price has been included in the lowest-price comparisons in this article.
George’s has served Thunder Bay since 1961 and carries meat, produce, bakery goods, prepared foods and products from local suppliers.
Readers who receive the George’s email should compare its meat and produce specials with Superstore’s $2.22 pork, FreshCo’s $2.49 chicken drumsticks and the week’s discounted apples before finalizing their shopping list.
What should Thunder Bay shoppers stock up on this week?
Potatoes: Superstore’s 10-pound bag at $1.99 is difficult to overlook. Potatoes can cover breakfast hash, baked potatoes, soup, mashed potatoes, roasted sides and casseroles.
Pork: Superstore’s $2.22-a-pound pork loin combination chops provide one of the week’s lowest meat prices. Metro’s $2.99 pork is another option, while Safeway’s $3.29 shoulder roast may be the better cut for slow cooking and producing leftovers.
Chicken: FreshCo’s drumsticks at $2.49 a pound offer a low-cost alternative to boneless breast. Buy extra only if there is freezer room.
Fall produce: Giant Tiger’s $2.44 three-pound apples, FreshCo’s 99-cent cabbage and Metro’s 99-cent squash can all stretch across several meals.
Freezer and pantry: Metro’s $2.99 bacon, Giant Tiger’s $4.97 kilogram of peanut butter and FreshCo’s three-litre vegetable oil at the $5.99 Scene+ price are among the longer-lasting purchases worth considering.
The rule remains simple: a stock-up price only saves money if the food is eventually eaten.
Four budget recipes built around this week’s grocery deals
The deeper savings come when several sale ingredients can be used in the same meal plan rather than buying a different group of ingredients for every recipe.
Fall chicken drumstick and squash tray bake: Use FreshCo’s $2.49-a-pound chicken drumsticks with sale squash, carrots and onions. Cut the squash and carrots into chunks, slice an onion and spread everything over a large baking sheet. Add the chicken, a small amount of oil, salt, pepper and whichever dried herbs are already in the cupboard. Roast at about 220 C (425 F), turning the vegetables partway through, until the chicken is fully cooked and the vegetables are browned. Make extra chicken for tomorrow’s lunch or soup.
Pork chops with apples and roasted potatoes: Combine Superstore’s $2.22-a-pound pork chops and $1.99 bag of potatoes with Giant Tiger’s $2.44 McIntosh apples. Roast cubed potatoes until nearly tender. Season and brown the pork chops in a skillet, remove them briefly, then cook sliced apples and onion in the same pan. Return the pork and cook until done. The apples provide sweetness without requiring a bottled sauce.
Bacon, pepper and squash pasta: Start with a few slices of Metro’s $2.99 bacon. Cook until crisp, remove and leave a small amount of the rendered fat in the pan. Add diced sweet peppers and cubes of 99-cent squash, then cook until tender. Toss with cooked pasta, a little pasta water and the chopped bacon. A small amount of grated cheese can finish the dish, but the bacon provides enough flavour that a large quantity is unnecessary.
Chicken, cabbage and potato soup: This is the leftovers recipe. Use cooked chicken from the FreshCo drumstick dinner, potatoes from the Superstore bag and FreshCo’s 99-cent cabbage. Cook onion and carrot in a pot, add diced potatoes, cabbage, water or broth and seasonings, then simmer until tender. Stir in shredded cooked chicken near the end. The bones from the original drumsticks can also be used to make stock before the soup is assembled.
Those four meals overlap heavily on ingredients. That is intentional. Reusing potatoes, onions, carrots, apples, squash and chicken is usually more economical than buying ingredients for four unrelated recipes.
How to stretch this week’s grocery dollar
Start by checking the refrigerator, freezer and pantry before making the shopping list. The cheapest item is one you already own.
Then choose the week’s discounted protein. For the lowest sticker price, Superstore pork chops at $2.22 a pound and FreshCo drumsticks at $2.49 a pound stand out. Households that want a slow-cooker meal may prefer Safeway’s pork shoulder despite its slightly higher per-pound price because the cut serves a different purpose.
Build the rest of the week around low-cost seasonal vegetables. Potatoes, cabbage, squash, carrots and onions can move between soup, roasted dinners, casseroles and side dishes with very little waste.
Compare package sizes. A $1.99 10-pound bag of potatoes is outstanding value only when the household can store and use 10 pounds. A smaller bag at a higher price per pound can still cost less if food would otherwise spoil.
Use more of the food you buy. Roast chicken bones and vegetable trimmings can become stock. Slightly soft apples can go into oatmeal or baking. Extra peppers can be sliced and frozen. Stale bread can become croutons or breadcrumbs.
Keep the number of shopping stops under control. Driving from one side of Thunder Bay to the other to save 50 cents on one product rarely makes sense after fuel, time and impulse purchases are included.
That calculation is even more important for people coming into Thunder Bay from rural Northwestern Ontario communities and First Nations. For those households, a well-planned freezer and pantry stock-up at one or two stores can be more valuable than chasing every advertised loss leader.
Finally, distinguish a loyalty price from the regular price. FreshCo’s $5.99 vegetable oil, for example, is tied to the advertised Scene+ offer. Check the digital offer, shelf tag and receipt before leaving the store.
Prices and flyer details were checked Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. Giant Tiger’s offers run Sept. 16-22; most other major-chain offers reviewed here begin Thursday, Sept. 17 and run through Wednesday, Sept. 23. Skaf’s new Thursday flyer had not yet been posted when checked. Prices, inventory, loyalty requirements and package sizes can vary, so confirm the Thunder Bay store’s current flyer and shelf price before making a special trip.
