A woman shops for produce in Vancouver, on Wednesday, July 20, 2022. Statistics Canada's latest consumer price index price index data shows food inflation continued to dip in March. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
TORONTO – Statistics Canada’s latest consumer price index data shows food inflation continued to dip in March.
The price of groceries rose 9.7 per cent last month compared with the same period last year, down from the 10.6 per cent year-over-year increase recorded in February.
Statistics Canada says the slowdown is driven by prices for fruits, which increased 7.1 per cent year-over-year in March after a 10.5 per cent gain in February, and vegetables, which slowed from a 13.4 per cent bump to 10.8 per cent last month.
While food inflation has been declining to start the year, experts have cautioned that doesn’t mean prices are coming down, but rather rising less quickly.
It is also still outpacing general inflation, which sat at 4.3 per cent in March, following a 5.2 per cent increase in February.
The cost of groceries rose 11.4 per cent year-over-year in January.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 18, 2023.
