Estimated reading time: 13 minutes
Find out how to save money on groceries amidst rising food prices in Canada. Learn budgeting strategies and smart shopping techniques.
Rising food prices in Canada mean finding low-cost foods with and without a grocery plan.
All these years, I’ve told the readers of Canadian Budget Binder to shop with a meal plan.
It feels weird to say this, but we need to be armed and on the hunt with rising food prices.
What I mean is yes, we will have a weekly meal plan; however, we’re likely to find other deals in-store.
Not much about finding grocery savings has changed, but if this is your first time educating yourself, there’s lots to learn.
When food prices increase, but our income stays the same, we need to buckle down.
Before we get into anything, you must complete a monthly budget, even if it’s a bare-bones budget.
You ask for trouble if you plan on shopping without a grocery budget.
Today, I want to discuss how we plan to fight the rising food prices and where we shop for groceries.
Technology-Based Grocery Shopping
I know consumers like curbside pickup for groceries or grocery delivery; however, it can still strain your grocery budget.
The ease of online grocery shopping and placing multiple grocery deliveries can be costly.
If this type of grocery shopping works for you, you must be cautious of overdoing it.
I think shopping online too much mostly boils down to boredom, shopping addiction, or fear.
The idea is to be open while grocery shopping to change your meal plan to spot reduced deals.
For many people, the pandemic scared the living daylights out of them.
I’m sure you all remember that customers cleared the shelves in 2021 with the massive shortage of toilet paper and other products.
It was all about grocery shopping and stocking up before the next person got it all.
Average Costs Of Groceries
Stats Canada Average Cost Of Groceries 2025
Food always seems to be a topic on our minds, especially when it’s time to stock up again.
The average cost of groceries depends on where you shop and how many people you feed.
This is a question I get asked often, but there’s no right or wrong answer because of multiple variables.
For example, if you are single, you could spend more than a family of three based on your grocery budget and health needs.
How To Deal With Rising Food Costs
Being the grocery nerd I am, it’s easy for me to see how rising food costs impact our budget.
There were times near the end of 2021 when we spent more than we should have bought on food and household products.
It was Christmas and New Year’s,’ and we didn’t even have a gathering as my nephew was COVID-19 positive.
This year has to deal with rising food costs and eat healthy meals within our budget.
We are lucky that the four stores where we purchase groceries are close, as is the Amazon grocery store.
Below, I will explain how we plan to deal with rising food costs at our leading grocery stores.
Before I get into it, I want to mention that we limit lunches, eat less, and reduce purchase amounts.
Costco Rising Food Prices
We’ve also considered reducing what we purchase with Costco’s rising food prices.
For example, a three-pack of Genoa salami cost $8.99, which is now nearly ten dollars.
The 10% cream and 35% cream have gone up in price, so we check for flyer deals first.
The Keto bread that Mrs. CBB buys has gone up from $8.99 for a double pack to $9.xx a bag.
The point is a dollar here and fifty cents there all add up, which increases expenses,
What we buy at Costco is limited, and we’ve limited the fruits and vegetables we buy.
The big bags of avocado, raspberries, blueberries, and lettuce are too much for us.
Since our son has a minimal menu plan, we buy items just for him, such as a three-pack of German Salami.
Even though this has increased, it is cheaper than buying it from any grocery store.
Use A Grocery Price Book (Free)
I wrote a blog post about keeping a grocery price book documenting prices, weight, and product count.
You don’t have to do this for every product, only the items you typically buy when grocery shopping.
Related: What we buy at Costco Canada to save money
When I created the Ultimate Keto Costco Canada Product List, I purposely left pricing out because it often changes.
Mrs. CBB has been eating a keto diet for years, so Costco has items that have the best prices.
We also purchase gasoline at Costco as it’s always the cheapest in town, plus I fill my two red gas cans.
Food Basics Rising Food Prices
We always buy our vegetables and fruits at Food Basics because they have always been cheaper.
Luckily, our Food Basics is fantastic and always has excellent selections for the best price.
We might buy our milk, cream, apples, bananas, kale, rapini, onions, cauliflower, cucumbers, and cookies, to name a few.
If we don’t need to go down any aisles, we skip them since Food Basics puts the reduced products in a grocery cart at the front cashiers.
Even Food Basics, where we live, has gone automated with self-scanners, which I don’t mind but would rather not.
Increasing self-scanners also equals fewer cashiers and loss of employment or movement around the company.
Shoppers Drug Mart Optimum
As I’ve mentioned, we have over 7 million PC Optimum Points on our card, which has accumulated over seven years.
Since then, we’ve made one redemption to buy our son an XBOX for Christmas this year.
As quickly as we lost the points, we had them back two weeks after shopping at 20x the points events.
We’re either redeeming in Shoppers Drug Mart when they have the Big Optimum sale or at Zehrs to buy groceries.
There’s more bang for our buck at Shoppers during a special Optimum event, but we also don’t need anything.
Our Shoppers Drug Mart has groceries and many that go on sale, but we couldn’t possibly get $300 worth.
What would you buy with over $6000 in PC Optimum points?
No, we cannot get cash for the points.
The fastest way to earn PC Optimum points is to get the PC World Elite MasterCard to earn points.
Only shop on 20x the points when you spend $50 or $75 in-store or more.
Buy only the items you need on sale to reach the goal sub-total or more.
For example, we recently spent $180 in the store and received over $50 points back.
P.S.- You don’t need a credit card to collect points; they offer a key tag and card for those who subscribe.
Zehrs Rising Food Prices
We only go into Zehrs to buy our meat that is 50% off or on sale and check for other deals.
Our meal plan goes off course as we scoop up deals, which means a quick budget adjustment.
Usually, we buy ground beef, pork, chicken bone-in-skin, and sausages.
We may buy steak in the summer; however, this summer, we plan to look for a local butcher,
Meat Delivery Service
TruLocal is another excellent place to order your fish and beef, plus they deliver it to you.
We’ve used them several times and were impressed with the product and the pricing.
TruLOCAL connects you to high-end, locally sourced meat products – delivered right to your doorstep across Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia.
For the most part, we take a quick whiz around the store, looking for 50% off items.
The prices at Zehrs are high, but it works out with the items we get cheap, especially if they are already on sale.
Related: How to save money buying meat at the grocery store
The Flash Food App Is A Must For Saving
We also use the FlashFood App to check our local Loblaws, Zehrs, RCSS, and No Frills for 50-70% off items.
You sign up for the app, and once it knows your city, it will bring up the stores in your area.
Scroll through and look at what is on sale, 50% off or more.
Order the items and go pick them up. We have found meat, potatoes, fruit, and veg boxes for only $5,
There’s no limit to what you buy, but you may have to freeze it if you don’t want to use it immediately.
Amazon Grocery Store
We have a Prime membership, which gives us access to free movies and documentaries.
Given the Prime membership cost, this has worked out great since we removed our cable and home phone.
The price for an adult is $7.99 a month, and for a student, it’s $3.99 a month.
Prime comes with many cool features, too.
We watch for products on sale, such as a six-pack of tuna, sugar-free ketchup, various keto products, and cat food (for the cat, ha).
Typically, the ketchup is $2.99, but you can only buy it in a pack of 12 right now.
So, purchasing a pack of 12 is not sensible unless you LOVE KETCHUP.
Related: What groceries we buy on Amazon Canada that save us money
However, a 700ml bottle of Nestle Chocolate Syrup is $4.87, which we can never find cheaper.
Delivery is free with Prime, and the price is the best, so we shop without guilt but within our budget.
Update 2024 – I’ve removed the middle man and made copycat homemade chocolate Nesquick syrup.
So, if you have a Prime membership, it’s worth grocery shopping at the Amazon grocery store.
You’ll even find coupons for diapers and various food products, which were handy for us years ago.
Related: The Ultimate Keto Canada Grocery Guide
Giving Up Foods You Love
With rising food prices, you might find products you regularly purchase too expensive.
Try not to talk yourself into buying these groceries on a whim because they will consume your budget.
We keep watching for the product to go on sale, and if it’s a reasonable price, we stock up.
That’s why we created a stockpile budget a few years ago, so we’d have an extra $25 monthly to spend on in-store deals.
For example, Mrs. CBB is giving up keto snacks such as Quest Bars, and I’m leaving behind fancy cheese I buy unless it’s 50% off.
Recently, I wrote a post about tracking the junk food bought at the grocery store to show you how much you spend.
The idea is to buy less or remove the junk food, leaving more room for real food.
Overspending On Groceries
There are six reasons people overspend at the grocery store;
- Rushing
- No Plan
- Grocery Shop too much
- Fail to compare product labels and prices
- Eating too much
- You’re hungry
Let’s Discuss How Easy It Is To Spend More
Rushing through the grocery store is almost guaranteed to spend more money.
You’ll save more if you can find time to read the weekly flyers and plan meals based on the deals.
If you’re grocery shopping too much, there’s no doubt you will be wasting money on food you don’t need.
With rising prices, comparing prices and reading the product labels is essential.
You may find another product offering more for less because an item is on sale in the flyer.
For example, a 5kg bag of flour is on sale for $3.99; however, another bag of 8kg is for $4.99.
Does Brand Matter?
Name Brand vs No Name Brand Does it matter?
Here’s another example: premade cookies are on sale for $2.99, but the family size is $3.99.
We realized we were buying our son’s favorite cookies last month, which were on sale.
He likes Oreo cookies and Christie’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, which often go on sale for $2.99 or 2/$4.00
Sometimes, we buy cookies on sale at Shoppers Drug Mart and with points based on our Optimum app.
Related: Secrets To How We Accumulated 7 Million PC Optimum Points
The weight difference and amount of product are significant with rising food prices, so don’t skip reading labels.
Look at the weight on the labels, the ingredients list, and whether it lists how many cookies are in the package.
Eat Before You Shop To Save Money
When you’re hungry, the old saying of grocery shopping will cost you more money because your brain and stomach become a team.
You’ll find you can easily convince yourself to buy something you can eat in the car, bus, cab, or walk home.
Have a light snack before grocery shopping, and beware of the rising food costs.
Are You Putting Too Much Food On Your Plate?
Lastly, are you overeating food?
Most of us do, even I do, and we have been working on portion control, fewer snacks, and reducing dairy consumption.
Permanently save where you can save or shop like money is no object and deal with the consequences.
Grow Your Food
During the Spring, Summer, and Fall, you can plant a garden in your backyard, front yard, or balcony if you have the space.
We have tomatoes and peppers in the back and the front; we have tomatoes and lots of herbs in pots.
We also participate in a community garden up the road at our son’s school, where I grow many beets and radishes.
In 2022, I plan to plant spring onions, kale, and beets to make more jars of pickled beets.
It might not be much, but it will save you money and get you out of the house.
Save Where You Can Is The Focus For 2022
- Coupons
- Rewards Points
- Surveys
- Mobile Apps
- Eating Less
- Cut The Junk Food
- Eat Before You Shop
- Incorporate Vegetarian Meals
- Watch For Scanning Code Of Practice Mistakes
- Try new vegetarian meals or new ones to your menu plan (Pinterest has millions of recipes). Please have a look at my extensive frugal recipe index.
- Create a realistic budget.
- Consider gardening
Finding grocery savings may be a bit more work, but you should be fine if you set aside time to make any of my suggestions.
If you can’t make ends meet, visiting a local food bank might help you with food to fill your cupboards.
Discussion: How are you going to save money with rising grocery prices?
Please leave me your comments below.
Thanks for stopping by, and for over 300 other grocery shopping posts; visit my Grocery Shopping Guide.
Don’t forget to subscribe to the blog if you are new here and get your free Emergency Binder.
I use to due all my shopping at Real Canadian Super Store. Prices are just too much for my budget. Now I shop at No Frills and Wal Mart for all my meat. I still go to Rcss for my gluten free items . Getting Cosco membership in spring for gluten free itemsI also, use bulk barn for all my spices and flour
Hi Gail,
We are similar but we go to Zehrs for the 50% off coupon deals and the FlashFood App which prices very low on close to expiry dates and boxes of fruits and veg always five dollars. The best place to shop for spices is an Indian Store. They are very cheap. Do you find the flour cheaper at Bulk Barn then the grocery store?
Great article on groceries saving. Being from Manitoba we don’t have some of the stores but I shop around for the deals. The problem I have is finding the deals and buying to much. Example is using Flash Food. If you don’t clip on the product and by it right away it is gone. So I end up buying more than I need. Thankful I have a freezer.
Haha, Dale, we are the same way which is why we budgeted for those deals in a separate budget category. Last year I got rid of our old freezer from the 70’s and bought an upright freezer. What a difference that has made for storage and electricity savings. The Flashfood AppFlashfood App Offers 50% Off At The Grocery Store is awesome and yes you have to be fast and there’s nothing wrong with buying too much as long as it’s in your budget and you will eat it before it becomes freezer burnt. We learned our lesson years ago buying cereal with coupons. We ended up with so much cereal that we had to donate it which wasn’t so bad after all. Thanks for sharing that with the community. Mr. CBB
I smiled at your comment about loving ketchup. We use alot here. I also buy it in a large can at RCSS for almost the same price as one bottle( the can fills 2 bottles with extra)
Hi Anne,
We buy the sugar-free ketchup now as it takes a bit for us to go through it and our son won’t touch it. Years ago we bought the big cans that you mention and it’s a bargain for families who go through lots of them. Thanks for sharing that Anne, I forgot about those days.