Canadians with Costco memberships might be saving money on bulk food purchases, but the deals don’t look great when comparing their value with other countries.
Despite Canada’s largest grocers saying they would work with the federal government to lower prices, Canadians still struggle to afford their weekly grocery hauls. Due to high food prices, many are boycotting Loblaw-owned stores this month.
It’s reached the point where Canada’s high grocery prices are attracting the attention of people in other countries.
A content creator in Mexico came across a Canadian Costco grocery haul in which someone spent $170 on staples like eggs, meat, yogurt, some vegetables, pasta, and bread.
Grocery prices Mexico vs Canada
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“How come no one told me [Canadian] prices are f*cking crazy?” he says.
“Today, I’m going to go to a grocery store here in Mexico and get the same amount of stuff and see how much it is.”
The man heads to Chedraui, which he describes as “the Mexican Walmart.” He then fills his cart with similar items from the Canadian grocery haul. It’s important to note he is not shopping at a Costco location, and the items he is putting into his cart are not the exact same as the other haul he’s referencing.
“I know inflation is a real thing, but I just didn’t know that, in Canada, prices were that expensive,” he says.
Canada’s annual inflation rate increased from 2.8% to 2.9% in March, according to the latest consumer price index report. The price of groceries rose 1.9% compared on a 12-month basis.
At the end of the content creator’s grocery shopping trip, the items cost a total of 982 pesos.
He converted his haul into USD (it works out to US$57). When converted to Canadian dollars, his grocery purchases work out to be about C$78.40.
All currency conversions in this article were calculated on April 30, 2024.
What is his comparison missing?
The video, posted on Reddit, had commenters sharing their two cents about the comparison and what information it was missing.
“This isn’t really a meaningful comparison. Cost of living is much lower in Mexico, and produce is grown year-round locally,” said one person.
Another Reddit user noted that the average person in Mexico “makes significantly less than your average Canadian.”
According to the OECD Better Life Index, the average household net-adjusted disposable income per capita in Mexico is US$16,269, or about C$22,372.
The Better Life Index says that Canada’s average household net-adjusted disposable income per capita is around C$47,333.
Another Redditor noted that the video didn’t consider “government regulation and oversight in Canada vs Mexico.”
“This isn’t specific just to food either; basically, any industry where there [are] potential health and safety risks faces considerable government oversight and regulation, which increases the cost of importing goods as well as domestic production,” they stated.
So, while this creator’s video was meant to highlight Canada’s grocery prices compared to other countries, using Costco as an example, it seems to have missed some critical details.
Daily Hive did its own price comparison of groceries between Canada and the Philippines.
While some items were surprisingly more expensive ($7/kg for russet potatoes in this economy?!), you might be shocked that others were on par with what you’ll find in Canada.
What do you think about the comparison between Mexico and Costco Canada grocery prices? Let us know in the comments.
With files from Irish Mae Silvestre.