Climbing food prices won't be a thing of the past in 2024 and Canadians could continue seeing that reflected on their grocery bills.

Canada's Food Price Report 2024, which was published on Thursday by Canada's top universities, predicts that overall food prices will increase by 2.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent.

This means the average Canadian family of four is expected to spend $16,297.20 on food in 2024, an increase of up to $701.79 from last year.

While there's still a forecasted increase in food prices, the report notes that it will be lower than the 5 per cent to 7 per cent increase in 2022 and 2023.

"[Customers] should expect to see a degree of stability return to food prices," said Stuart Smyth, chair of the Agri-Food Innovation and Sustainability Enhancement at the University of Saskatchewan, and one of the contributors to the report.

"I am optimistic that the phrase 'sticker-shock' will become less commonly used throughout grocery stores in 2024."

The most significant increase in food prices ranges from 5 per cent to 7 per cent in the categories of bakery, meat, and vegetables.

Canada's Food Price Report 2024

The report cites the tumultuous year the world has had politically, environmentally, and economically as factors in rising food prices.

Unprecedented wildfires and floods across Canada, the war in Ukraine, and conflict in the Middle East continue to affect energy costs and commodity prices, according to the report.

On top of that, the cost of living crisis continues to mount for Canadians with unaffordable housing and rising personal debt.

"The year 2023 posed significant financial challenges for Canadian families, one of the toughest in recent memory," said Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, project lead and director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University.

The report also suggests that Canadians are spending less on food with retail sales data indicating a decline in monthly spending per capita between August 2022 and August 2023 (from $261.24 to $252.89).

Estimated annual spending for a family of four in the past year was $693 lower than originally projected, which the report says is concerning to researchers.

"Reduced expenditures in the face of elevated food prices indicates Canadians are decreasing the quantity and quality of food they are buying," it reads.

And the decrease in spending could be exacerbated by customers' waning trust in grocery giants.

"There is a prevailing sentiment that grocers profit excessively and exploit inflationary trends," reads the report. "Profiteering and price gouging were common media stories."

Looking to the new year, researchers are keeping an eye on Bill C-56, which proposes amendments to the Competition Act. It aims to increase and enhance competition, specifically in Canada's grocery sector, which is currently commanded by several large companies.

The report says that, if successful, the bill could impact property controls that grocers may use to prevent competitors from opening nearby, providing Canadians more choice in their neighbourhoods.

"In general, increased competition leads to lower prices and we have observed the positive impact of heightened competition," reads the report.

"The hope is that C-56 may have a positive impact on prices in the grocery sector by encouraging and increasing competition."