More Than Half of Canadians Worried About Putting Food on the Table: Poll

A woman shops for produce in a grocery store in Toronto in a file photo. Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press

A new poll suggests that more than half of Canadians surveyed are worried about having enough money to put food on the table, while 86 percent of people are worried the country will face an economic recession in 2023.

Food inflation is reported at higher than 10 percent, and the most recent Canada Food Price Report released Dec. 5 says the cost of groceries will increase another 5 to 7 percent on average next year. These are the highest increases in food prices in the last 12 years that the report has been produced.

“This year’s report predicts that a family of four, including a man (age 31–50), woman (age 31–50), boy (age 14–18), and girl (age 9–13) will pay up to $14,767.36 for food, an increase of up to $966.08 from the total annual cost in 2021,” said the report.

Food price increases in Alberta, British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, and Saskatchewan will likely be higher than the national average in 2022, while price increases in the remaining provinces will be lower.

Gas Costs

Besides food prices, Canadians are also worried about putting gas in their cars and trucks. Sixty-one percent of 1,005 adult Canadians surveyed Nov. 11–15 in the Ipsos poll commissioned by Global News said they were worried they may not be able to afford fuel for their vehicles.

Seventy-one percent were worried that interest rates will rise too fast, while 42 percent said they were worried about losing their jobs if the economy did not rebound.

Fifty-two percent of Canadians surveyed said they were worried they would be short of money to buy Christmas gifts, and 48 percent said they were worried about overspending during the holidays. Eighty-one percent of those surveyed were worried inflation was making everyday items less affordable.

A similar poll was carried out in October, and in just one month’s time, concern over almost all of these day-to-day economic concerns increased. For example, in October, less than half (48 percent) of those polled were worried about affording gasoline, and that rose 13 percent to 61 percent just one month later.

“Consistent with October 2022, women are significantly more likely than men to express concern over the majority of these items, including the potential for a recession (92 percent vs. 80 percent of men); economic troubles impacting retirement (72 percent vs. 62 percent of men); interest rates rising quicker than they can adjust (76 percent vs. 67 percent of men); getting in over their head with holiday spending (52 percent vs. 43 percent of men); and not having enough money to buy holiday gifts (56 percent vs. 48 percent),” said the poll.

Cutting Back

Younger people, at 68 percent of those polled, were more likely to feel concerned about affording the holidays and buying gifts, as were 65 percent of parents surveyed.

Ipsos has been tracking the extent that Canadians may be changing their spending habits and cutting back on non-essential items to cope with high inflation. Fifty-two percent of Canadians say they have reduced eating out.

Almost half, 46 percent, of those polled report reducing entertainment, 44 percent are buying less new clothing, and 31 percent are reducing their travel in Canada. Another 28 percent are reducing their travel outside the country.

Half of Canadians are looking at flyers and shopping for sales, while another 31 percent are using coupons to save money.