We surveyed 2,120 members of our Canadian agent community and found that 15% use a GLP-1 for weight management, raising timely questions for food, beverage and restaurant brands.
GLP-1 medications are changing more than conversations about health and weight. We believe they may also be changing what people put in their grocery carts, how much they eat, which product claims get their attention and how often they visit restaurants.
For companies that make, sell or serve food, we think the question is no longer whether GLP-1 use could affect consumer behaviour. It is where those changes are showing up, and how quickly brands need to respond.
We recently asked 2,120 members of our Canadian agent community about GLP-1 use. Here is what they told us:
Those results caught our attention, especially when we compared them with recent North American research. A March 2026 Leger survey found that 8% of Canadian adults and 11% of U.S. adults reported currently taking a prescription GLP-1 medication.
GLP-1 medications commonly reduce appetite and cravings. But we do not think brands should assume that simply translates into “people buy less food.” The effects may be much more nuanced: smaller portions, fewer impulse purchases, different restaurant choices, greater attention to protein or nutrition, less interest in certain indulgent categories, and new expectations around packaging and serving size.
Recent Canadian and U.S. research has already identified self-reported shifts away from restaurant and indulgent spending among some GLP-1 users. But broad market findings cannot tell you exactly what is happening in your category, at your retailers or among your customers.
That is where we believe direct shopper research becomes especially important.
When we look at these results, we do not think the most useful question is simply whether grocery spending is going down. We want to know how the basket is being rebuilt.
A shopper using a GLP-1 may buy less volume while placing more value on:
At the same time, we expect categories associated with large portions, frequent snacking or impulse-driven purchases may face different pressures. The impact will not be equal across every shopper or category.
If we were building a focused study for a CPG manufacturer, retailer or restaurant company, these are some of the questions we would want to explore:
We believe these answers can help brands distinguish a short-term sales fluctuation from a longer-term change in eating occasions, household dynamics and product expectations.
We would encourage companies to test:
The goal is to understand whether a growing consumer behaviour is changing the job your product needs to do.
We do not believe the next useful insight will come from guessing that GLP-1 users eat less. It will come from asking them what has changed: what they buy, what they leave behind, what they wish brands offered and what would earn a place in their new routine.
That is something we can help you do! We can connect food, beverage, retail and restaurant companies with Canadian GLP-1 users from our agent community through targeted surveys, concept tests, shop-alongs, product trials and in-store research.
If you have questions for Canadian GLP-1 users, we have a panel ready to answer them. Contact Field Agent Canada today to build a custom study.