Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
The Canada Day long weekend is the perfect time for burgers on the grill, cold drinks and time with family and friends.
Yet a backyard barbecue comes with a bigger price tag this year.
Food prices soared 9.7 per cent in May compared with a year ago as inflation hit its highest level in nearly 40 years.
Prices for many barbecue favourites like steaks and veggies have increased even more, which will make entertaining with family and friends this weekend costlier.
Using prices gathered by Statistics Canada, the cost of hosting a Canada Day barbecue with eight adults and eight children today would cost $302.04 -- more than 17 per cent higher than in 2021, when the bill came to $257.27.
The higher prices could prompt a shift in shopping and consumption habits as people look to save money at the grocery store.
"Prices are going up much faster than we've been accustomed to for the past four decades," said Sal Guatieri, a senior economist at BMO Financial Group.
"People may start to switch to cheaper items, especially when it comes to food. They may substitute chicken for steak to save money, for example."
Travelling over the long weekend will take an even bigger bite out of budgets. The cost of filling up one tank of gas and spending a night in a hotel room has risen to about $317 from about $220 a year ago -- nearly 44 per cent higher.
Still, higher costs are not expected to deter Canadians from gathering and celebrating this Canada Day.
"The pent up demand to socialize and get out and have barbecues this summer will outweigh the higher costs," Guatieri said.
"But once households have exhausted some of their savings and the pent up demand has waned, we could start to see a bigger change in behaviour."
Despite skyrocketing costs, Canadians are better off this year compared to last year, University of Toronto economics professor Angelo Melino said.
"More Canadians are working and they're working more hours," he said. "The nation's GDP, the amount of goods and services that we're producing, has gone up and consumption has gone up pretty dramatically."
While some higher costs could encourage Canadians to buy cheaper alternatives at the grocery, the prices for some backyard barbecue staples have remained stable.
"Alcohol and recreational cannabis are not up as much as other things so maybe beer is a cheap first of July beverage ... but maybe (people will buy) hotdogs instead of steaks."
Here is a look at the costs for items on a typical Canada Day barbecue menu.
(Food group percentages are the average price increase in May compared with one year ago, based on Statistics Canada inflation data. Additional details of a specific item's price are average estimates from April 2021 and April 2022, the most recent month for which the price breakdown is available, and are not statistically comparable. Costs are the estimated cost of grocery shopping for a barbecue with 16 people.)
Beef: 11.2 per cent
The cost of a kilogram of striploin steak was $22.87 in April 2021. For a barbecue with eight adults, each consuming a roughly half-kilogram steak, the cost would be $91.48. A year later, the cost was $28.80 per kilogram for a total bill of $115.20.
Chicken: 7.9 per cent
In April 2021, chicken breasts cost $12.58 per kilogram. Two kilograms to share at the barbecue would cost $25.16. Today, with a price of $15.32 per kilogram, the cost would be $30.64.
Hotdogs, sausages: 9.9 per cent
In April 2021, about 400 grams of wieners cost $3.76, or about $7.52 for 800 grams (about two packages). In April 2022, the cost increased to $4.09 for 400 grams, or $8.18 for 800 grams.
Bread, rolls and buns: 11.1 per cent
White bread increased to $3.37 for 675 grams in April 2022 compared with $3.03 in April 2021.
Vegetables: 10.2 per cent, fresh fruit: 11.3 per cent
A kilogram of tomatoes increased to $4.21 from $3.70, a kilogram of potatoes went down to $4.18 from $4.22,a kilogram of onions rose to $5.28 from $4.14 and romaine lettuce rose to $3.58 from $2.63. The price of a cantaloupe rose to $3.28 in April from $2.82 a year before. The cost of one avocado rose to $2.35 in April from $1.76 a year before.
Ice cream: 4.1 per cent
A litre of ice cream that cost about $4.50 in 2021, or $9 for two litres, would now cost about $4.70 or $9.40 for two litres.
Edible fats, oils: 30 per cent, Condiments, spices and vinegars: 20.6 per cent
A litre of ketchup rose to $4.07 from $3.32, mayonnaise rose to $5.93 from $4.55 and vegetable oil increased to $10.83 for three litres, up from $6.48 a year before.
Beer: 4.8 per cent
A 24-pack of beer that cost $47.50 a year ago would cost about $49.50 today.
Wine: 4.7 per cent
A $20 bottle of wine a year ago would cost a little under $21 today, or $40 for two bottles compared with $42 today.
The total cost of hosting a Canada Day barbecue in 2021 would have been about $257.31. Today the same barbecue would cost $302.00 -- more than 17 per cent higher.
For those travelling this Canada Day weekend, inflation will hit even harder.
Traveller accommodation: 40.2 per cent
Hotel rooms have gone up from about $141 a year ago to about $200 in May.
Gasoline: 48 per cent
Gasoline prices in Canada in May 2021 were $1.32 a litre. In May 2022, prices across Canada hit an average $1.95 a litre. The cost to fill up a 60 litre gas tank rose from $79.20 each in 2021 to $117 each in 2021.
For a family travelling this Canada Day and filling up one tank of gas and spending one night in a hotel room, the cost has risen from about $220.20 to $317 -- nearly 44 per cent higher.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 1, 2022.
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.
Australian police arrested seven teenagers accused of following a violent extremist ideology in raids across Sydney on Wednesday, as a judge extended a ban on social media platform X sharing video of a knife attack on a bishop that started the criminal investigation.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a Grade 4 student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.