A majority of Canadians are struggling to feed their families as grocery prices skyrocket across the country.
According to a new Angus Reid Institute poll, 57% of Canadians said they were having trouble putting food on their tables. This compares to only 36% of people who reported the same difficulty in 2019.
When taking into account the “Economic Stress Index” which considers factors including debt, housing prices and financial situations, 98% of Canadians who reported they were struggling financially had trouble affording food.
The index breaks down groups of respondents into four categories: Struggling, Uncomfortable, Comfortable and Thriving. According to the index, 52% of the country fell into the Struggling or Uncomfortable categories.
“For those who are Thriving, food costs are manageable, or an afterthought,” Angus Reid analysts wrote.
“For those who are Uncomfortable or Struggling, putting food on the table can be a substantial challenge.”
The latest Statistics Canada data shows that the price of basic foodstuffs has surged across the country. The price of cooking oil has shot up by 41.4% while the cost of stewing beef and bacon has increased by 17.2%.
Even vegetables such as carrots saw a price increase of 13.5%, meanwhile the cost of white sugar jumped by 21.6% last year.
Last week, inflation in Canada reached a 30-year-high with the Consumer Price Index reporting a rate of 4.8%.
The Conservatives have taken the Liberal government to task over its responsibility for rising inflation rates. Recently, parliamentarians met for an emergency meeting at the Commons finance committee to schedule hearings on the matter.
“The biggest increases for consumer products have been those that we source right here at home, not those that depend on foreign supply chains,” said Conservative finance critic Poilievre.
“Home price inflation is a home-grown problem… The more (Trudeau) spends, the more things cost.”
