Monique Bessette is well aware of the impact of rising food prices. Since the pandemic, this volunteer from the Pointe-aux-Trembles and Montreal East Volunteer Association has been scouring the shelves of supermarkets to help the 167 recipients of the grocery assistance program set up by the organization. “Everything is more expensive and our beneficiaries see it on their bill,” says the volunteer on the way to the supermarket.
The shopping lists that Monique Bessette prints contain an average of 20 products, all identified by her customers on promotional flyers. Some words no longer appear on the pages printed by the volunteer. “We very rarely buy steaks. It happened once a person allowed it,” she says.
Cuts of beef are among the products whose price has risen the most. While a kilogram of steak was at $17.17 in 2017, it costs an average of $25.44 in 2022. The products preferred by program providers, pork chops and fish, show the same increase. While the kilogram of pork chops was at $8.35 in 2017, it costs $12.25 in 2022.
Overall, food prices have risen sharply over the past five years and even more so in recent months. According to a grocery cart made by The Press based on Statistics Canada data, the cost of 25 staple foods in Quebec has gone from $112.36 in 2017 to $143.09 in 2022, an increase of 27%.
Other products on Monique’s list have seen a considerable price increase. In 2017, a kilogram of tomatoes cost $4.17 while it costs $4.87 in 2022. The same is true for cheese with a 13.8% increase in the 500 g block. In his Nutritious and Economical Food Basket Cost Reportthe Montreal Diet Dispensary also quantifies the increase: the minimum annual cost of a grocery store to feed a family of four has risen from $11,286 in 2021 to $12,987 in 2022.
This significant increase is the result of several phenomena occurring simultaneously, explains Sylvain Charlebois, senior director of the Laboratory of Analytical Sciences in Agrifood at Dalhousie University. “There is a sequence of different macroeconomic factors including climate change, the war in Ukraine and problems in supply chains, for example. All this has meant that food inflation has been rising for months and surpasses the general inflation rate. »
Small budget for small nutrient balance
At the bottom of Monique Bessette’s list, it is noted “frozen meals”. There are all kinds. The volunteer points to some of them, saying: “Those are good, still quite balanced. Then she heads for the specials. “The cheaper ones aren’t very nutritious, though. “These are only pasta or rice dishes, Bolognese, cheese shells… 47% of the recommended sodium intake per day for a 280 g dish. But for these three trays, the service provider will pay $4.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
The shopping lists that Monique Bessette prints contain an average of 20 products, all identified by her customers on promotional flyers.
“The part of the budget that we put into food is more flexible than others, such as rent or transport. By reducing the food budget, our choices are of lower nutritional quality. Processed foods are more economical, for example,” explains Marie Ève Labonté, associate professor at Université Laval and member of the Food Supply Quality Observatory.
Once at the checkout, Monique fills a bag and a half of food with a budget of $44. There are 18 articles, not one more. Every time, the volunteer went to the products on sale. Result: $26 savings, depending on the grocery store. But the balance sheet remains heavy and is becoming more so.
Solutions for consumers
Indeed, solutions are rare and often have to come from consumers. As the members of the Volunteer Association of Pointe-aux-Trembles and Montreal East do, one of them is to hunt for bargains. “There are all kinds of things people can do. You can check the prices before going to the grocery store. The market is very virtual today,” advises Sylvain Charlebois.
“Discounted products are sold in supermarkets because they are close to the expiry date. It’s an interesting way to reduce the grocery bill. We can also do without meat in certain dishes by replacing it with inexpensive plant-based proteins,” adds Marie-Ève Labonté.
Apart from these initiatives, patience is the watchword. “We expect a drop, but not immediately. It will take some time. The dollar can play tricks on us, gasoline too, but we hope that things will recover in the coming months,” explains Sylvain Charlebois.