Like language and history, food is inextricably linked to cultural identity and the feeling of home. That’s why, when moving to a new country, grocery shopping and food preparation can sometimes seem confusing and overwhelming.
At Remitly, we’re committed to supporting immigrants in their transition to a new country. This article details everything that newcomers to Canada need to know about food and grocery shopping.
What do newcomers to Canada need to know about groceries?
Shopping for food in Canada presents locals with a lot of different options. Traditional grocery stores are a foundation of food shopping. However, more modern options, like ordering groceries online, are becoming popular.
Shop like a local
In Canada, it is common to shop for your groceries yourself in-person. It is also becoming more and more popular to have groceries delivered to your home through online shopping services and apps. According to Canada’s Food Price Report, the average adult in Canada will spend about $300-350 per month on food, depending on where they live.
The ten most consumed groceries in Canada, in order of popularity, are fruits and vegetables, eggs, dairy products, bread and bakery products, rice, meat and sausages, pasta, snack and potato chips, breakfast cereal, and fish and seafood.
Balancing cultural familiarity with new flavors
Food connects you with your culture, heritage, and identity. Having a tangible connection to these things is even more important if you’re an immigrant. Food can also act as a community-building tool. It brings people together and can foster a sense of belonging.
If you’re living in a city, most of the ingredients you need to create an authentic cultural dish will be available to you. In remote areas, it’s common to have to travel farther or pay higher prices for less common items.
In a pinch, you can swap out traditional ingredients for more readily available ones. For example, you can use turmeric, ground coriander seed, or ground cumin in place of curry powder.
Finding a community group where you live is a great resource for asking how other people have solved or overcome challenges like finding necessary ingredients for cooking. Just as traditional food curates community, so too will the tips and tricks you may need to navigate cooking in a new culture.
According to recent reports, the average family of four living in Canada can expect to pay close to $17,000 per year on groceries. This figure is up $800 from last year, and grocery prices in Canada continue to be a challenge.
To give you an idea of costs, here are some common grocery items and their average price in Canada in December of 2024:
- A dozen eggs, $4.75
- A liter of milk, $3.04
- A kilogram of stewing beef, $20.58
- A whole chicken per kilogram, $6.92
- A kilogram of salmon, $24.81
- A kilogram of apples, $4.93
Why are groceries in Canada so expensive?
Multiple factors contribute to Canada’s high grocery prices. As the world becomes more globalized, people living in Canada eat food grown or produced all over the world. At every step of the way from farm to shelf, grocery costs can rise. Let’s take a look at some of the factors leading to high prices:
- Importation: Canada’s reliance on imported food, especially in winter, makes its food prices sensitive to exchange rate fluctuations.
- Climate change: Extreme weather and climate change reduce domestic food production, increasing reliance on imports while also driving up their costs.
- Limited competition: Canada’s grocery market is dominated by a few major chains, limiting competition and driving up prices.
- High costs of operation: Rising fuel costs affect farmers and transporters, resulting in a higher price tag on groceries for consumers.
- Supply chain issues: Global supply chain challenges impact the availability of fresh foods, leading to price increases.
Smart strategies for grocery shopping
After housing and transportation, food is the biggest expense for Canadians. With prices on the rise, it’s important to try to minimize costs as much as possible. Managing your grocery budget is a major way to ensure financial stability. Here are some practical tips for grocery shopping in Canada:
- Shop in bulk. Buying in bulk, especially for non-perishable items like toilet paper, helps lower costs. There are popular warehouse stores in Canada where you can buy in bulk. You can also purchase larger packs of common items in everyday grocery store chains.
- Buy generic. Generic brands often offer the same quality as name brands at a lower price, as they save on marketing costs. For example, No Name is a generic brand in Canada that has become popular for its incredibly simple packaging.
- Shop seasonally and locally. Buying in-season and local produce reduces costs by avoiding import expenses and minimizing supply chain markups.
- Try discount stores. Keep an open mind about discount stores. These can be great places to get non-perishable items and small grocery items at cheaper prices than big-name stores.
- Use coupons and loyalty programs. These days, most grocery stores have apps and loyalty programs that you can manage through your phone. Many stores also still have paper flyers that have weekly deals and coupons.
Making healthy choices
The Canadian government is so invested in health that they’ve developed a plan called the Canadian Food Guide to help strategize your food shopping. The guide is based on five principles, which we’ll outline here.
Five steps to healthier grocery shopping
- Be prepared. Shop with a grocery list, and do not shop hungry. This will help you make better-informed decisions about the food you’re buying.
- Fill your cart with healthy choices. The majority of your purchases should be fruits and vegetables, whole grain foods, and proteins.
- Assess your shopping habits. Avoid prepared and ready-to-eat foods, which usually contain preservatives or excess salt, sugar, and fat. And don’t buy items just because they have flashy or colorful packaging or are on promotion.
- Think of the environment. Bring a reusable grocery bag to the grocery store to avoid the use of plastic bags. Try to purchase food that has little or no packaging. Only buy the amount of food that you know you can eat or correctly store.
- Try to make an impact at your grocery store. Grocery stores are constantly responding to customer shopping patterns. If you don’t see an item, ask for it. Even if it is not stocked, your interest might encourage a grocery store manager to start selling it.
Incorporating the Canadian Food Guide principles
There are many other ways to educate yourself to make healthy food choices. Learning how to read nutritional labels on food is a great way to ensure that you’re eating healthily. Alternatively, learning how food is marketed and how that marketing affects your shopping habits is a great way to support informed decision-making about food.
The Canadian Food Guide also has information about how to eat healthily on a budget in Canada and meal planning.
Where to shop: popular grocery and specialty stores
Regardless of your location, budget, and shopping style, there are plenty of options for where to shop in Canada. Here are some of the most popular options:
Grocery, department, and warehouse stores
- In grocery stores, you can get fresh foods, non-perishable foods, and household items. The biggest chains in Canada are Loblaws, Sobeys, and Metro.
- Department stores like Walmart offer home supplies, furniture, appliances, and clothing alongside groceries. They are great one-stop shopping destinations.
- Warehouse stores typically offer products in larger quantities or bulk. Sometimes, these shops require you to have a membership, which involves an annual fee. The most popular of these stores is Costco.
International products, local markets
If you’re looking for specific items in Canada, you might have to look in specialty stores or local markets to find them. For example, T&T Supermarket is an Asian grocery chain in Canada that has products tailored more specifically to Asian cooking culture.
If you’re looking to explore local markets in Canada, search based on your province. For example, here is a page that supports farmers’ markets in Vancouver.
Beyond the cart: exploring online options for grocery delivery
Aside from in-person shopping, ordering groceries online is becoming more and more popular in Canada. Although you have to trust the company that is doing the shopping on your behalf, the convenience of online grocery shopping can make healthy eating more accessible. Here are the top online grocery services in Canada:
- HelloFresh: If you’re into meal prepping, HelloFresh is for you. This company delivers fresh groceries to your door with accompanying recipe cards.
- Voila by Sobeys: Instead of going to a Sobeys shop yourself, you can select products online and they’ll be delivered to your doorstep.
- Walmart: This department store will deliver groceries to your door in as little as two hours. You’re required to order a minimum of $35 to qualify for delivery.
- Instacart: This is a third-party company that will go to major grocery stores on your behalf and deliver your desired products to your home.
FAQs
If I can’t find my favorite products in Canada, can I bring them with me from abroad?
If you’re entering Canada, you can bring food from abroad for personal use. There are some limitations on the types of foods and the quantities that you can bring into Canada. If you’d like to bring food into Canada for non-personal use, you’d have to have an import licence.
What are a few traditional Canadian dishes that my family should try to familiarize ourselves with the local culture?
Poutine is typically considered Canada’s national dish. Poutine is a dish made up of French-fried potatoes, cheese curds, and gravy. It was popularized in Quebec in the 1950s. Other popular dishes are lobster rolls and bannock, a flatbread made with flour, water, and fat.
What are some other tips and tricks I can follow to get settled in Canada?
Canada is a huge country. One thing you can do to feel more empowered in your move is to get to know the different provinces and make an informed decision about where to live. If you’re ready to make the move to Canada, we have a comprehensive guide that can help you prepare for your big trip.