High inflation rates affecting many places: Food policy professor

People’s grocery bills are on the rise with inflation rates experiencing increases not seen in a while.

The overall inflation rate in Canada in January rose to 5.1 per cent, the highest it has been since 1991. Food inflation was a little higher than that, at 6.5 per cent, after the biggest year-over-year jump in more than a decade.

While Canadians are paying more, food distribution and policy professor Sylvain Charlebois told Gormley guest host Mike Couros it’s a problem facing more than just one country.

“I think we are in for quite a few months of rockiness. In Florida, the food inflation rate is actually close to eight per cent,” Charlebois said from Tampa Bay, Fla., where he is currently a visiting scholar at the University of South Florida.

“I know a lot of people in Canada are making fun of the prime minister saying this is a government that doesn’t care about inflation rates. It’s a global phenomenon. Food inflation is hitting every single western country — there are a few exceptions — but right in the G7, the U.S. is No. 1, Great Britain is No. 2 and we are No. 3, so we’re not even in the worst of it.”

Charlebois said there are two types of inflation he has seen when it comes to food: Shrinkflation and shelflation.

“Shrinkflation is something we can’t do much about other than not buying the product,” he said. “It’s a strategy (by which) companies will actually reduce quantities but charge you the same price. They will play around with the packaging so you don’t notice the difference. It does happen when input costs go up and that’s exactly what is happening right now. We are expecting more shrinkflation cases.

“We’ve seen that in chips. I’m sure many people would have noticed there’s more air in chips when you buy a bag. Chocolate bars, bacon — most packages are sold in 375 grams instead of 500 and it’s $8. It’s a buck a slice (for bacon) now as a result of shrinkflation.

“The shelflation issue is a big one right now because supply chains are not as efficient as they used to be for a variety of reasons. You see some cargo waiting in warehouses; they are spending more time on trucks. There was a blockade in Alberta and Manitoba and trucks had food on them.

“When the transport chain is compromised, the shelf life of a lot of products you buy at the grocery store is compromised. You’ve got to be careful because you may actually buy some products and they aren’t as fresh as they used to be so a few days later they are rotten on your counter or in your fridge which makes you pay more for food.”

Charlebois said he expects the inflation rate to get even higher before it gets better.

“Work with the supply chain,” he said. “If you are comfortable enough, you just need to go to the grocery store a bit more often and buy perishables a bit more often and you will waste less. The savings will be on the back end and not in the stores as much.

“Good luck finding promotions; there’s not a lot of products being sold at a loss to get you in there.”

He added people should use their freezers if they have them to keep food in their homes for longer periods of time.

He adds flyers are also a great way to save some money.

“We just completed a study for a company in Montreal and we noticed that if you are a family of four and you read flyers every single week for a year, you get better educated about the marketplace, you know how much you should be paying for food and you’ll save anywhere from $750 to $1,000 a year,” Charlebois said.