I would like to confirm that the tradition of using the poppy needle to pick the layer of skin on your finger in school is still going strong

Important Canadian objects: literally just a PC optimum card

It's been two years and I'm still waiting for the 'great Québécois syrup conspiracy' video

In South Korea, we have the "No Brand" knockoff of "No Name." They are carried in E-mart supermarkets and have their own Aldi-style "No Brand" stores.

I love no name products because they're cheaper and I dont see the point in spending more than I have to- particularly on staple products like flour or sugar or butter. Show me how spending 2$ more on granulated salt or sugar makes sense? Is it higher quality salt? If someone frowns on me or tries to shame me for saving money I'll laugh in their face

2:22 No! I hate when people do this. Just punch a medium sized hole at one end, and then a tiny hole at the opposite end. Pour it out from the medium sized hole, with the small one letting the air out so it doesn't go "GLUGLUG" as it pours out. Keep the lid on.

your accent sounds so normal until you say around or about. as a Canadian I've never heard someone say it like that un-ironically.

Anyone else have no shame about buying no name? Half the time it’s better than brand name anyways!

Britain and Canada take the poppy thing super seriously. During the 2016 US election, I was interviewed on our campus by BBC because I was an American student in Britain. When they started filming, they asked, "where's your poppy?" I told them I didn't have one and they seemed shocked. Luckily the camera man let me wear his, so that they could continue filming my responses. It was a really weird experience.

Alternative title: "Let's confuse non-Canadians" Get it?

A Canadian friend of mine joked about how the no name packaging looks very Orwellian in design and looks like it came from an alternate universe where Canada was behind the Iron Curtain as he put it.

Despite also being in the Commonwealth realm with the Queen as head of state, Australia doesn't hang up portraits of the Queen as it's quite an old-fashioned thing. But back in August 2018, a Vice article about Australians being entitled to a free portrait of the Queen upon request led to MPs' offices being flooded with mostly ironic requests for a portrait of the Queen. Since this was prescribed in law, MPs fulfilled the requests and some sent Australian republican merchandise to go with the Queen's portrait.

Funny though, when I moved to Canada, I found those no name products so amazing that I've spent several months only packing my house with its products.

My pantry would be yellow AF. I started to try Great Value (Walmart) products, and found that 95% are as good if not better than the name brands. I also love the no name gimmick on the package.

I can no longer support this with a clean candian concious after watching him open and waste a whole can of that syrup..

That yellow no name brand is a big memory for me. They didn't have pictures on the packaging back in the 80s, just an identifying word like CHIPS across a yellow bag. We would open up the cupboard when Dad went shopping and feel pretty satisfied to see no name chips up there. Cuz no name chips were better than the alternative, which was no chips.

Is there some Quebec Maple Syrup Mafia or something? I need a video on that

Funny thing is all those yellow products are most likely made in the same place as the fancy version. No quality difference, just cheaper packaging.

Hey JJ, I’m a long subscriber of your channel and a big fan. I’m a Brazilian-born Canadian who has been living in Canada for almost ten years now. I can call Canada my home, and I love Canadian culture and even the long winter. I’m writing to share a personal experience regarding the poppy. It was my second week here in Canada as a permanent resident, and I was walking around my neighbourhood when an older man criticized me for not wearing a poppy. I swear I’d never heard about it before that moment. I saw people around me wearing it, and I thought it could be a religious thing, so I never asked about it. Lol The next day I was at work, and a born Canadian friend asked me why I wasn’t wearing the poppy, saying that as an immigrant, I should embrace the Canadian culture and traditions blá-blá-blá. I said: what’s a poppy? He immediately understood that I was not wearing a poppy, not because I didn’t care about Canadian tradition, but because I didn’t know what it meant since they don’t teach that to newcomers. It takes some time to absorb the culture because when you land in a new country, your first concerns are housing, documentation and getting a job! Lol Since my friend explained the meaning of the poppy, I’ve embraced the tradition, and I wear it every November. The explanation above is to address a recent event in Canada, where a famous hockey reporter criticized immigrants about not wearing the poppy. I’m not pointing the finger at him. But when it happened, I thought that most immigrants don’t follow the traditions of their new country not because of disrespect but because of ignorance (by that, I mean not knowing about traditions). For those that are not aware of the immigration rules, you only learn about Canada's history and culture when applying for citizenship. It takes 3 years of permanent residency to be eligible for citizenship in Canada. So newcomers are not educated about traditions and culture until they coexist with other Canadians. I love these videos with Canadian traditions and culture because I always learn more about the country I call home, and I raise my kids learning to love it. Thanks for sharing your knowledge! Cheers! Moe.

Semi-pedantic rant: the Duray socks are wool, the Rockford Red Heel are cotton. Cotton sucks. Thank you for your patience.

3:18 It's a CAN-dle! Get it? I'll see myself out

The yellow stuff reminds me of the 'Great Value' Wal-Mart brand in the US.

0:34 No-name groceries were really popular in the US back in the late 1970s, but quickly faded after inflation was crushed. 7:53 I remember we'd do that with plain old stick pins.

w h y d o e s h e s a y A B O O T i’m canadian and don’t get Canadians i’ve NEVER met someone who says about like that

I live in Manitoba and I've never seen canned maple syrup. So funny when you just poured it out on the pancakes. Lol

1000 likes and he makes the syrup video.

As a kid there was so much yellow in our pantry I had to wear sunglasses before opening the door

In quebec maple syrup is still mostly sold in those cans in 2019

That No Name home brand looks very identical to the Black & Gold home brand we have here at IGA Supermarkets in Australia. As in, really identical. The photos of the contents therein, the Helvetica font, the garish yellow. I wonder who ripped off whom?

I always love watching your videos. They always cheer me up down here in the 🇹🇨.

your open and honest enthusiasm is wonderful

"Prince Philip is one of the lesser known members" A word to the wise from the mother country: keep it that way. No, really. Just ... don't go there.

In the UK, we used to have a supermarket called 'kwik save', they had their own range of 'no name' brand products called 'no frills'. The packaging was even more bleak the your no name packaging, it was just white with black text, no picture. Since then all the supermarkets here have copied it, even though kwik save is long gone. Sainsburys basics, Tesco value, asda smart price, even upmarket Waitrose has their essentials range.

just watched the previous video, and if it makes you feel better we have those weird vinagar containers here in Maryland as well. We too put vinager on everything, but mostly fries.

Can I just say that every single time you use sound effects, like the SMW gate-clear one that you inserted on the "President's Choice" reveal, it adds tremendously to my enjoyment. Your selection of sounds is always so damn spot-on (and they don't even rely on knowing the game that they came from, either). Great video btw.

Lmao thought I was alone with my school stabbing poppy’s through our fingers

I find the part about the queen kind of interesting. As an American, the political discussion of pro- or anti- monarchy (obviously) doesn't exist, so few Americans have an opinion. I think for many Americans, myself included, the whole idea of the queen is just sort of this fascinating fairy-tale-esque remnant of the middle ages

As a Canadian I can say something to confuse other Canadians My city has bath tub races

Loved pricking my skin with a poppy when I was little. Also I am obsessed with those socks. They are a must have for the Canadian winter ❄️

(I have to tell you that this is Peter's wife writing, or it will sound weird). I am the daughter and sister of welders, the wife of a former carpenter and handyman, and the mother of a construction worker, and I spent some time myself as a farm hand and a logging camp cook. Those socks are just called "work socks". I never realized that there was anything distinctly Canadian about them. As for the Remembrance Day poppies, every year I would buy one and then lose it within the next hour until I discovered a simple hack. I have a tiny Canadian flag pin with an earring-type clasp on the back. So now I replace the bent pin with that flag and I haven't lost a poppy (or stabbed myself ) since.

The Québec Premier is holding a gun to JJ's face at 2:53.

You should do a video on lesser known Canadian leaders and what they did and the impact they had on today, but otherwise love the videos keep it up

I've lived in Canada all my life, and I've never seen or even heard of canned maple syrup! Someone please tell my I'm not the only one????

0:48 Wow. That's clearly very effective because I had no idea all of those stores had the same parent company until now

why would you call Canadian brand "President's Choice" if Canada doesn't a have president. that would be like branding a British cookie "Republican Biscuits"

The vinegar thing is called a cruet.

the part about the queen was interesting to me, because in Norway we (atleast used to) hang pictures of our king and/or queen in our outhouses.

On the portrait of the Queen, common over here in New Zealand too but when it's joined by one of Prince Phillip, his portrait is meant to be slightly lower than that of the Queen's to show that he isn't her equal and she out ranks him. Phillip will be hung in military places and veterans places too as he is a WW11 vet and royal Colonel of many regiments etc

Don’t forget to talk about The Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist! Lol my favourite topic!

Wow Saturday snuck up on me but not complaining I get a JJ video!

_”like schools, libraries, city halls, community centres..”_ me: *_”legions.........”_* edit: @ 7:10 i unironically said out loud, _”cadets? aren’t those mini soldiers?”_ (shhhh i’m a cadet, it’s okay! be sure to get your poppies kids!)

The poppy part really brought back a lot of Remembrance Day memories when I was in elementary school in Vancouver back in the early 90s, the poor, hard yet happy days. Thanks JJ for this video and in fact all your other videos about Canada which I really like watching simply to know more about Canada. Though I'm now a professional in Hong Kong in my thirties already with the ability to settle in most countries around the World, I know I will return to live in BC one day coz it's such an awesome place. Looking forward to more of your videos and if you need anything in Hong Kong or China just give me a heads up. Cheers!

I have awaited this video all morning.

Another banger ! Love ur vids J.J! u deserve so much more subs

The socks are often called “Nipigon nylons” for the town of Nipigon in Ontario where they supposedly originated

Honestly, some of the No Name products are actually of surprisingly good quality. If you had dug a bit deeper, one of the things that you find out is that a lot of those products actually come from the same factory as most popular brand name product. They are, in effect, virtually identical.

Growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, we had a grocery store chain called National's. Their logo was the Loblaw's logo upside down, and yes, they carried President's Choice.

I always love learning about Canadian culture from you. Perhaps I need to send you some artifacts from my rural corner of North Carolina soon so that you can learn about mine.

I’m Canadian, those poppies poke you. Everybody tries to poke them into there skin.

I just stumbled upon your site today and I have to say you do a fantastic job. Your videos are informative, interesting and diverse....going from politics to coffee. 🤓 You would make a fantastic teacher.

I’m Canadian and I thought that everyone used that sock. Wow never realized it was Canadian.

Things only canadians understand: Bagged Milk

In Flanders fields probably my favorite poem, I remember singing a version of this poem on veterans day for my great grandfather and my uncle at a choir concert. One of my favorite memories

That's so funny that you brought up the poppy pin through the skin thing, I vividly remember doing that as a kid

I actually wouldn't mind seeing a video where you explain all the decorations on the shelf and desk even though I recognize most of them like the Energy Tank from Mega Man mug.

I would love to hear about the Québécois racket on Maple syrup.. that was a quick full stop lol

It seems like one of those situations where the minimalism of the packaging design might lead the products to be more sought after maybe down the road. Like they could charge more for the non-branded stuff in the future and more well-off people would go for it. I as an American would be interested to buy the striking yellow basic box with the direct typeface. In the states we have things Great Value brands and Good & Gather but those are just a store’s specific brand for selling value products. 1:38 is also very aesthetically pleasing. Imagine opening your cabinet to that! Side note: we usually go for the great value and good & gather because you’re getting pretty much the exact same product at a WAY better price!

I've worked in a loblaws grocery store for 12 years & have never seen a can of maple syrup.

I have terrible memories of those socks in scouts as a kid. I wore them when we went camping in the winter. Not only were they ill-fitting and horribly scratchy, but they also were as absorbent as sponges. My feet were warm, but they remained horribly soaked for entire weekends at a time. I never understood why I kept receiving those damn socks every Christmas, but I guess it's because my mom wanted me to have a uniquely Canadian product, no matter how awful?

The funny thing is. My city has a Superstore which has been around for at least 20 years, and three years ago a Loblaw's opened. Then it went out of business 6 months ago, and everyone went back to shopping at Superstore.

I’ve waited for this all my life! 😍

My heart broke when the syrup was recklessly poured

I thought I was the only person who experienced the poppy-finger thing!

I’m old enough to remember when No Name first came out and there was everything from No Name chocolate pudding to - I kid you not - No Name cigarettes. And back then the quality of the contents was as substandard as the packaging. So much so that the yellow packaging went away for a while because it became linked to buying crap products. The company switched to the President’s Choice brand labelling, complete with their CEO doing ads and little fake magazines. Then that brand lost its appeal and they brought back the no name labelling as nostalgia.

I cant believe how much i enjoy watching your videos from 8800 km away (istanbul !). I found you a week ago. I dont know how the youtube algorithm works but you just popped on my page.

Also, you can email the federal gov and request a portrait of the Queen, they will send you one for free. Apparently it's our right.

2:26 I love how he fearlessly dumped all that syrup onto his pancakes

The design on the maple syrup can originates from a contest in 1951 by the Ministère de l'agriculture in Quebec. Because before '51 syrup was sold in gallons (around 3L) and was wasted a lot (crystallization and mold), so the government chose to put it in 591ml cans. And put up a contest to distinguish "official" quality syrup and "sirop de poteau" (low quality syrup) :)

Honestly it makes sense that the poppy pin gained more popularity in Canada and Britain, seeing as "In Flanders Fields" was a poem written after the Second battle of Ypres, a battle America was not involved in, but the British and Canadians were

5:07 a boot o g I’m so affended it’s a bout

You know tbh I like our poppy better than the British one. It’s less ‘authentic’, maybe, but it’s colours are more striking. Idk, maybe it’s just cuz I’ve grown up wearing them. Great vid as always! Are you ever gonna do like a short video on the history of a certain province, like Manitoba, BC, or (dare I say) Quebec?

In Australia there is a law which basically stated any citizen could request from their MP a free portrait of the Queen. This law has been around for decades without much fanfare until last year when an Australian Vice journalist found out about the law and published an article about it, this was quickly picked up by mainstream media as well. As a result of so many constituents ironically requesting portraits there was a national shortage and a 10 week backlog in my electorate alone (and I don't even live in major city).

Seeing "President's Choice" products was a blast from the past for me. I am in St. Louis, Missouri where there used to be a chain of supermarkets under the name "National" stores. They moved out of town probably 20 or more years ago. The logo for National looked very similar to the Loblaw logo--so I'm pretty sure it's the same company.

Bob Loblaw's Bland Blah-Blahs

I remember stabbing poppies through my finger too. Glad I wasnt the only one 😂

Watching you dump that whole can on the pancakes literally made me gasp lmao

the vinegar thing is a cruet I believe. Opening the can of syrup, back in the day we had a can opener for juice cans, pop cans etc. that punched a triangular hole in the can and left the lid on the can. some things you don't see anymore, 28 oz cans of jam, 48 oz cans of baked beans, a six pack of beers in stubby bottles for $2.36, an actual imperial gallon of paint, 48 oz cans of juice, an actual imperial gallon of milk in a glass bottle. when the change was made to metric a large number of commodities were left at 4.54 liters, or got shrunk to a Trudeau gallon (4 liters). Under pressure from the United States of Arseholes, most of these eventually became US gallons. Our grandparents fought WW1, our parents WW2, so young man, learn to respect your elders and their sacrifices. wooden lacrosse sticks, and wood with rawhide mesh snowshoes (still have mine, 50 years after I bought them at the Tire), a Hespeler hockey stick, all the Tim Horton's coffee shops baked their own doughnuts from scratch in that shop every day, and you could buy a big bag of day olds just before closing time so they did not have to keep them overnight.

Interested video...nice video my dude

I saw you watched Name Explain's latest video.

im so happy that poking your finger with a poppy was a widespread canadian child thing

Really enjoyed this video! Interesting fact about our British Poppy; it’s very common to have the poppy leaf pointing to the 11 O’Clock position, as it is the time of day on Remembrance Day when we have our 2 minutes silence. Also, I may be wrong, but in some of your videos a few years ago, did you have a portrait of the Queen hung up on the wall behind you? If so, was it your choice or was it something that someone else put up, or was just there? Thanks!

JJ, your videos never fail to entertain :) you're probably one of the best KZfaqr and have one of the best fanbases as well. Speaking of, your fanbase doesn't have a name lol

Canned syrup must be a west Canada thing because I have never seen it in Ontario

I’m a Canadian who lives in the greater vancouver area too! i am also a dual citizen of Canada and the USA, just like you JJ! In my time in mainstream high school I was under strict “suicide watch” protocol, escorted to all my classes, and only attending 3 days a week for 2 classes. During Remembrance Day, everyone one got the typical poppy pins, me on the other hand was given the poppy stickers they give to pre-school and kindergarten students, I was so so embarrassed, everyone was asking why I had a different poppy “they ran out” was the best answer i could give haha.

Fun fact on this 2 year old video. No Name bags (trash, sandwich bags etc.) are made in America in the same factory that makes many (american) "store brands". So the proud Canadian brand is only canadian in distribution. Same Plant also produces bags for a large european discount grocery that (allegedly) makes you bag your own groceries and use a coin in the cart. Source: I worked there and ALWAYS got stuck on the machine running the No Name orders.

I have literally never seen a picture of the queen in a public building in the UK.

Presidents choice froot loops taste better than regular froot loops!

The plastic poppy is also widely used in New Zealand and worn on ppls shirts to celebrate 'ANZAC day' which, (correct me if I'm wrong) is a day of memorial for the New Zealand and Australian soldiers who lost their lives in WW1 but particularly the battle of Gallipoli

Us Swedes also have a time of year when children go around selling plastic flowers, although for us it's in May, with the aptly named "Mayflowers" (Majblommor). The design is rather basic, but the colors vary from year to year. Outside of basic plastic flower pins, you can also buy metal brooches, decals and wreaths. The children selling them get a cut of what they sold them for, but the majority goes to a charity helping children in socially and economically tough situations.

This is the best channel it's not even close