A deal on corn caused a frenzy over the weekend at a No Frills grocery store in Scarborough.
Enthusiastic shoppers crowded around the corn on the cob display, pushing and shoving each other, leaving no cob behind.
The reason? A dozen ears of corn was selling for just $1.68.
Video of the chaos was captured by a shopper on his iPhone.
Sunny Gandhi said he was shocked when he saw the mayhem and decided to film it. He posted it to Facebook and it’s since been viewed nearly 600,000 times.
The Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association has several theories for the low cost No Frills was charging that led to the free for all.
WATCH: Chaos ensues over corn sale at No Frills in Scarborough
The association said the store may have been getting rid of its stock or was selling it as a loss leader.
Jordan McKay of Willowtree Farm in Port Perry sells several different types of corn.
McKay said, “Usually when a large grocery chain is bringing in produce, it’s coming from a large grower to their warehouse and then to the store, so it can be in storage for a number of days up to a week before it hits the customer shelves.”
His corn on the cob is picked daily, he added.
He noted discount prices like $1.68 for a dozen ears of corn poses a challenge for farmers.
“A lot of customers see that price or see a loss leader price on strawberries or something else at the grocery store and they think that should be the price of food,” McKay said.
“They don’t realize a lot of grocery stores make very little on produce because they’re going to get you to buy their milk, their eggs, their dry goods, their cereal, their bread, where they have better margins,” he added.