October 19, 2025

Welcome to Letters from CAMP, a newsletter on anti-monopoly activity in Canada and abroad, brought to you by the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. In this instalment we have:

• Federal government approves Sunoco’s takeover of Parkland gas stations and infrastructure
• Elevated lead levels in popular protein powders remind us of the need for regulation
• Open Markets releases a new report on Big Tech’s threat to freedom of speech

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Now let’s dive in.

Carney Government Approves Sunoco-Parkland Takeover Under Investment Canada Act

This week, the Federal Government approved the takeover of Canadian energy and retail company Parkland by the U.S. based Sunoco, a deal worth an estimated $9.1 billion USD. Parkland operates several thousand gas stations across Canada and internationally under several brands. In Canada, names like Ultramar, Pioneer, Chevron, and Esso will be familiar. Each of these is a part of the Parkland umbrella. They also operate a major refinery in Burnaby, B.C., a critical link in the province’s energy infrastructure.

Industry Minister Joly has decided that this deal is a net benefit to Canada, but CAMP and our allies think otherwise. Immediately concerning are the fates of Canadian workers, especially if the takeover is used as an excuse to rationalize operations are move jobs down south to save on costs. Strategically, this deal also looks like a major loss for Canada, as control over critical infrastructure and fuel supply comes under control of a US corporation whose chair is a “mega-MAGA” type, as well as the former president of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (now part of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation), a key instrument of America’s global economic grip.

This transaction has a been an early failure of the government’s resolve to protect Canadian infrastructure and reinforce our sovereignty. Given our reliance on foreign firms for critical infrastructure, whether physical or digital, an the increasing the foreign ownership of domestic assets, including our own railroads, transactions like these continue to open fronts for future exploitation. While an unwelcome development, Sunoco-Parkland is just a prelude to future tests, namely the proposed merger of Canadian mining giant Teck and U.K. based Anglo American. It is time to confront an uncomfortable reality: Canada will need to change course if we want more and not less control over our economic future.

A Little Bit of Lead, As a Treat

Protein powder has been on the market since at least the 1950s. But in recent years the product has transitioned between a niche bodybuilding supplement to a lifestyle and weight loss product, and an important part of plant-based diets. Today, we are in the grip of a full-blown protein craze, with many (often erroneously) fixated on maintaining a high protein diet. This has driven a surge in the market for protein powders. But it now appears that protein enthusiasts may be getting more than they bargained for. A recent Consumer Reports study found that a number of popular protein powders, particularly the plant-based varieties, contain alarming levels of lead.

It turns out that plants used in making protein powders, like rice, peas and hemp, are particularly good at absorbing heavy metals from soil. This makes them more likely to contain lead, either through its presence in the soil or through industrial contamination. While we all ingest a little lead every day, some of the products tested by Consumer Reports exceeded the weekly limit suggested by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) within a single serving. CAMP isn’t usually in the business of PSAs, but readers should certainly check to see if their favourite protein powder is on the list.

This reporting reminds us of the need for effective regulation and the importance of systematic study by independent consumer protection groups like Consumer Reports, who have been at this work for decades. In the US, protein powders are considered dietary supplements and as such there are no limits on how much lead is allowed. The FDA expects companies to self-regulate, and tests only a fraction of manufacturers each year. The same is true in Canada. Although the Canadian Food Inspection Agency tracks chemical residuesin foods, protein powder’s status as a “dietary supplement” or “natural health product” can mean it isn’t subject to the same regulations that foodstuffs are subject too. We trust the companies that make the things we put into our bodies every day to maintain high standards, but this recent fiasco shows us that trust alone is not enough.

📚 What We’re Reading 📚

• Bedoya, How I Became a Populist (The New Republic)
• Steinbaum, Anti-Monopolism as an Ideology of the Left (LPE Project)
• Asaria, Ambitious Canada Pt. 2 (LinkedIn)

Big Tech’s Threat to Freedom of Speech

Since its inception, the internet has been a foundational enabler of the freedom of speech across the globe. But a new report by leading U.S. anti-monopoly organization Open Markets shows how the foundations of European democracy are under threat from tech companies that have come to dominate online spaces. The entrenched positions of companies like Google, Meta, X and TikTok and their position as key channels of communication give them an undue influence not only over markets, but over citizens and policymaking as well.

A growing number of cases show how tech companies are actively putting their fingers on the scale, amplifying content that fits their own agendas and censoring others. This distorts our public discourse and creates direct risks to the stability of democratic regimes and the freedom of speech and expression. Canada is no stranger to this kind of behaviour. Take for example Meta’s degrading of the Canadian news ecosystem in response to the Online News Act. These companies leverage pervasive surveillance of their users to profile them and manipulate the content they are served. With no obligation to neutrality and no democratic accountability, they have the potential to be the most extensive propaganda tools ever created.

Reckoning with the need to protect genuine freedom of speech, Open Markets argues, means constructing alternatives, digital commons that realize and uphold individual rights, freedom to speak and freedom from algorithmic discrimination. Policy tools, like neutrality and non-discrimination rules, can be used to protect the freedoms of people, rather than tech companies, and antitrust tools can be used to ensure compliance, and prevent the consolidation of power over users and legislators. In countries around the world, the failure to reign in these platforms has turned a problem of regulation into a crisis of sovereignty and may soon turn into a struggle for the survival of democracies.

If you have any monopoly tips or stories you’d like to share, drop us a line at hello@antimonopoly.ca

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