(Halifax) The trend of rising food prices in Canada, to unprecedented levels, is set to continue next year due to pandemic disruptions to the food chain, labor market issues and consequences of extreme weather events, says a new study.
The 12e Canadian Consumer Food Prices Report, released Thursday, predicts that the average Canadian family will pay $ 966 more for food in 2022, which adds up to an annual bill of $ 14,767 on their grocery cart.
This is a 7% increase from 2021, the largest jump on record in the Canadian Consumer Food Price Report forecast.
“The era of cheap food is over,” said Sylvain Charlebois, lead author of the study, professor and director of the Agri-Food Analytical Sciences Laboratory at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia.
“Prices have increased since 2010 and the pandemic has accelerated the pace,” he said.
The prices of dairy products could increase by 6% to 8%. It could be the same for the prices on the menus of the restaurants, because, in particular, of the labor costs generated by the shortage of personnel which pushes the wages up, and also of renting of the commercial premises.
In contrast, price increases are expected to be somewhat lower for fruit and vegetables as well as for baked goods.
The report predicts that the smallest price increases, of zero to 2%, are expected to occur on the meat and seafood shelves.
The study expects an increase in food insecurity in Canada which will increase the pressure on organizations such as food banks which will face increasing costs.
Growing food insecurity is driving another phenomenon: theft of food from stores, especially meat, cheese and energy drinks, according to the study.
On the other hand, consumers can expect to be faced with empty shelves in grocery stores often in 2022.
Climatic events, such as forest fires in British Columbia and droughts in the Prairies, have negatively impacted bakery and meat prices in 2021 which are expected to persist into the next year.
The study writes that a few provinces should expect food price inflation higher than the Canadian average next year. This will be the case for Alberta, British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and Saskatchewan.