Canada

as a single parent w/4 kids...since I've been keeping track of prices in my area 6 years ago when I moved here, prices have gone up 30-40% at least. Dairy, meat and vegetables have gone up the most. The crazy thing is that 'cheap' foods that used to be on sale for really cheap now rarely even go on sale. Basically, I've been paying double for pasta compared to 6 years ago with sales. And while it's not a large part of my grocery bill and it's still comparatively cheap, it adds up. I'm lucky that I have a tiny bit of wiggle room in my budget, but just barely. We have cut out a lot of meat...which is tough because I do best when I do low carb so it's been hard on my health. I bought a pressure cooker and we do more cooking from scratch...which is hard when you don't get home from work til 6pm. I have older kids that can start the meal cooking but they aren't always willing (or available). I have been trying to stick to cheaper veggies...cabbage, carrots, onions etc. Asparagus is one of my kids' favorites, but it's a no-go for now as it's way overpriced. same for fruit. Even grapes for snacks have gotten ridiculous, so no grapes either. Apples and bananas. More frozen stuff now too.

I can't even imagine what people do when they have no wiggle room. I know if I lost my job it would be impossible, even with child support/EI & other gov't programs. I do think more needs to be done. No one should go hungry in Canada.