Walmart Canada Moves to Stop Machete Sales in the Wake of New Manitoba Law

Walmart Canada Moves to Stop Machete Sales in the Wake of New Manitoba Law
People shop at a Walmart in Vaughan, Ont., on July 2, 2024. The Canadian Press/Christopher Katsarov
The Canadian Press
Updated:

Walmart Canada says it will stop selling long-bladed weapons across Canada, both in-store and online.

The move comes after Manitoba passed a law last year to ban in-store sales of machetes and other long-bladed items to minors.

Justice Minister Matt Wiebe wrote to some of the big online retail outlets like Walmart and Amazon to ask them to follow the spirit of the law.

Amazon announced earlier this week it is going further than the law by restricting shipments of long-bladed weapons to all Manitoba addresses, even if the buyer is an adult.

Walmart is going even further by removing long-bladed weapons from online and physical stores across Canada.

Machetes have been used in several assaults in Manitoba, including one case last year where a man required surgery after being attacked near a Winnipeg convenience store.