Celery leads pack of runaway produce prices

Celery is leading a surge in food costs that’s touching a nerve with Canadians across the country.

Price inflation for fruits and vegetables is getting so bad even fruit-flavoured beverage “crystals” are blowing up in price – up 10.4 per cent last month compared to a year ago.

Indeed, public attention has suddenly — and deservedly — turned toward the explosive growth in produce prices as the loonie plays havoc with the cost of imported goods.

While attention has been fixed on $8 heads of cauliflower (which have since receded to a tamer $4.99 or less at stores), there’s plenty of other fruits and vegetables posting sizable jumps, chief among them, celery.

Also read, Cauliflower prices fall back to earth in GTA.

More salads may be suffering from a lack of crunch, with celery prices surging a giant 46.3 per cent in December, according to Statistics Canada. Produce in general is up 13.3 per cent compared to a year ago.

While rising food prices are a concern, the mania gripping the collective psyche of the country over the cost of cauliflower at the moment is tied to a deeper anxiety about the fate of the dollar, experts say.

“It appears that vegetable prices have become the symbol of how the lower loonie is affecting the average Canadian,” BMO’s Doug Porter said.

Also read, 5 Suddenly Expensive Foodstuffs, According To Statistics Canada.

Source Jamie Sturgeon, Global News