More Canadians are relying on credit to put food on the table — and sacrificing nutrition in the process — according to a new survey that shows how the strain of Canada’s affordability crisis is increasingly surfacing in grocery aisles.
A new survey from insolvency and debt relief firm Spergel finds that a majority of the 269 Canadians questioned said they had skipped meals or reduced portion sizes in the past six months due to financial pressure. Fifty three per cent of the respondents, who were between the ages of 30 and 60, reported using credit, buy-now-pay-later services, lines of credit or payday loans to purchase groceries in the last six months.
Two in five respondents, 46 per cent of which were from Ontario, said they had delayed paying another bill so they could afford food.
“In my 20 years of doing this, I never thought I’d see the day that food would be the thing that people are struggling with,” said Rob Kilner, partner and insolvency trustee at Spergel. “That’s something we never had seen before.
“There’s something fundamentally wrong when we have to rely on credit just to survive.”
The strain is also reshaping what Canadians are buying. Nearly half of respondents said they were purchasing less meat or protein, while 44.2 per cent reported buying fewer fruits and vegetables.
“Eating healthy has become extremely expensive,” said Kilner.
He noted that the implications extend beyond household budgets.
“If you can’t afford basic living, then there goes your health,” he said. “And if you have health problems, then you’re a bigger strain on the medical system, which means more costs for Canadians.”
Though the federal government introduced a grocery rebate earlier this year, Kilner argues it has not meaningfully addressed price pressures, as rebates alone don’t resolve why groceries remain expensive.
According to Sylvain Charlebois, a Canadian food economist and professor at Dalhousie University, the answer lies in how the market itself is structured. While many Canadians accuse grocers of price gouging, Charlebois argues the data does not support that claim.
“The gouging accusations are unfounded because you only need to look at gross margins (to understand)…gross margins aren’t moving,” he explained, referencing profit margins that typically float around two to four per cent. “And so it’s hard to accuse them of gouging consumers.”
Instead, he says competition is the core issue in Canada’s concentrated grocery sector.
As of 2026, Canada’s grocery sector has a valuation of more than $121 billion, with the top five players — Loblaws, Sobeys, Metro, Walmart, and Costco — controlling about 80 per cent of the market.
“With more options comes more competition. And with more competition, you typically get lower prices,” Charlebois said.
He also points to property controls as a structural barrier. Large grocers, he notes, sometimes use lease agreements that prevent competing food retailers from opening in the same plaza or nearby.
“This limits competition around their own store,” Charlebois said. “It’s a real problem.”
But the power imbalance extends beyond storefronts.
Before a product even reaches shelves, manufacturers often face listing fees to secure placement, slotting fees for premium shelf space, or additional charges to appear in flyers or promotions. Refusing those terms can mean not being stocked at all.
Though the recently implemented Canadian Grocery Industry Code of Conduct aims to make dealings between grocers and suppliers fairer, it doesn’t address the structural pressures that keep prices high.
“Manufacturers have no other choice but to deal with (major grocers),” Charlebois said, adding that fee increases and commercial pressures can ripple through the supply chain. “And that’s all led by grocers.”
A spokesperson form Metro, Canada’s third-largest grocer, told the Star that it “does not comment on the individual financial situations of its customers, including issues of debt or credit use,” adding that the rising cost of living is “putting pressure on more households” as food insecurity becomes a bigger societal concern.
“Our teams are continuing their efforts to offer affordable options,” said Metro vice president of public affairs and communications Marie-Claude Bacon.
She added that the “increasingly complex economic conditions” are changing Canadians’ grocery shopping habits.
“In general, we are seeing increased price sensitivity, a marked interest in promotions, and a search for economical solutions, particularly through private labels and our discount banners,” she said.
Such demand for economical solutions has increased traffic towards grocery apps like SAVR, a Niagara-based grocery price-comparison platform.
“People have no brand loyalty anymore, whether to a retailer or specific product,” said David D’Agostino, co-founder of SAVR. “Canadians are having to work harder to stretch their dollars. They’re comparing products, brands, and stores more than ever to get the best total price.”
With his business partner, Peter Bartus, D’Agostino created SAVR to allow users to enter their grocery list and see prices for each item across multiple stores, making it easy to identify the best deals or figure out which store offers the lowest total cost.
“In December, for example, a list including pastas, rice, spinach, and produce showed a $16.86 price gap between a discount leader store versus a traditional big-box competitor — that’s a 30 per cent markup just for convenience,” D’Agostino told the Star.
Though he emphasized that there’s an increasing appetite for apps that cut grocery costs in Canadian households, such innovations do little to change the broader market forces shaping Canada’s inflated food prices, he said.
