Price increases for many products
Across Canada, prices for basic food items have increased. The price of animal products like meat increased up to 9.5 percent and had the highest growth compared to other food products in 2021. Food prices vary across the Canadian provinces, with the consumer price index (CPI) for food almost 40 points higher in some provinces. However, every province has experienced an increase in the CPI of food purchased from grocery stores. Despite price increases, grocery store retail sales in Canada have been increasing over the past two years.Consumers are not the only ones feeling the pressure of rising prices. Milk prices are set to increase due to the costs that farmers and dairy producers face for farm costs and animal feed. Many commodities used for animal feed have been heavily impacted by the conflict in Ukraine. Coupled with increased gas prices, farmers are pushed to raise their prices. Last year, the average price of fluid milk in Canada was 1.68 Canadian dollars per liter, but in several provinces, the cost is up to about two Canadian dollars per liter.
