Food prices in Canada keep going up and there seems to be no end in sight.

Yes, cost of living in Canada is no joke. From housing and transportation to electricity and gas, everything seems to just be getting more expensive day by day.

Food and grocery prices are no exception.

According to Canada’s Food Price Report, grocery prices will increase by five to seven per cent in 2023. This will be the highest predicted increase in groceries since the establishment of the report 12 years ago.

The report predicts that the most significant increases will be toward dairy products, at a six to eight per cent increase, and bakery products and vegetables, at a five to seven per cent increase. 

The report predicts that an average family of four will pay more than $16,200 next year for groceries, in comparison to the $15,200 in 2022, for the same groceries.

The increased prices is because of the disruptions to the food supply chain over the last couple of years, climate change and adverse weather effects, labour force challenges, high inflation and food transportation challenges.

Another factor to the increase in grocery prices is The Bank of Canada's interest-rate decisions. These decisions will affect the Canadian dollar, therefore affecting the cost of food imports as well.

Last year, the Canada Food Price Report predicted that grocery prices would increase as much as seven per cent over the year.

However, it rose more than 10 per cent between November of 2021 and September of 2022.

According to Sylvain Charlebois, the director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University and another one of the report's authors, the start of 2023 will be focused more on the Canadian dollar and interest rates.

The second half will provide more relief for families on tighter budgets, with prices beginning to level off.