The Cost Of Food Is More Expensive In Canada & These 7 Items Will Hurt Your Wallet More Now
Your fridge might not be so stocked with these items now. 🍞
Aisle in a grocery store. Right: Person holding a Walmart receipt.
Due to the continued rise of inflation in Canada, there are a bunch of grocery items that are going to be costing way more than they did last year.
According to the Consumer Price Index for April 2022 released by Statistics Canada, the cost of food has gone up a whole 9.7% since the same time last year.
That marks the fifth month in a row that the increase has been more than 5% and the biggest rise since September 1981 – over 40 years ago.
While your entire grocery bill is likely more expensive now, there are a few specific items that you will really notice have gotten more expensive.
The biggest increase can be found in products that are made from wheat and grain.
Pasta saw a huge increase of 19.6% in the last year. Bread and rice were impacted as well, each going up in price by 12.2% and 7.4% respectively.
Wheat products aren't the only grocery items that are more expensive now.
Fresh fruit and vegetables both saw big jumps, costing consumers 10% and 8.2% more than April 2021. Also, the average cost of meat has gone up by 10.1%.
Need to take a coffee break after hearing this news? Well, that cup of Joe is, unfortunately, going to run you 13.7% more than it did a year ago.
According to the Consumer Price Index, the main driver of price increases for food is the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
With both nations being major exporters of wheat, the disruption on the global market has put pressure on the cost of those pantry staples.
Other factors that are making things more pricey include bad weather in farming regions and the rising cost of natural gas and fertilizer for farmers.
As the cost of food rises, Canadians have been sharing how they save money on groceries and keep to a budget including collecting points, buying in-season food and shopping wholesale.
It has been predicted that the average family of four in Canada will spend $14,767.63 on food in 2022, an increase of $966.08 from the total annual cost in 2021!