Close X
Tuesday, November 26, 2024
ADVT 
National

Canada saw decline in fresh fruit, vegetable availability in 2022: StatCan

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 31 May, 2023 03:56 PM
  • Canada saw decline in fresh fruit, vegetable availability in 2022: StatCan

Statistics Canada says fewer fresh fruits and vegetables were available to Canadians in 2022, due to factors such as ongoing supply chain issues, labour shortages and price increases.

StatCan says the amount of available fresh fruit declined by more than five per cent in 2022 from the previous year, to 72.9 kilograms per person.  

Even though there was a 12.7 per cent increase in domestic fruit production, it was not enough to keep up with an increase in exports and a decrease in imports, the agency says in a report released today. 

The availability of fresh vegetables — excluding potatoes — was 64.7 kilograms per person in 2022, a decrease of nearly six per cent from 2021.  

Just like with fruits, Canada's vegetable production increases in 2022 were not enough to keep up with a rise in exports and a drop in imports, StatCan says. 

The agency says some Canadian food industry sectors experienced record production in 2022, but also exported more food internationally than the previous year. 

It says the entire industry was affected by pandemic-related supply chain issues, such as shipping delays and shortages of labour and products. 

StatCan also cites price increases as one of the factors. Extreme weather, the war in Ukraine and energy costs severely impacted global food prices last year. 

Food inflation was stubbornly high in Canada in 2022, outpacing overall inflation. Grocery prices were up 9.8 per cent in 2022 compared with 2021, the fastest pace since 1981.

StatCan's latest report says the amount of milk available to Canadians also decreased by nearly four per cent in 2022, compared to the previous year. 

StatCan says that was mainly caused by a drop in production of one per cent milk and two per cent milk.

In contrast, red meat availability increased by 4.3 per cent in 2022, led by beef as cattle slaughter increased from the previous year. The amount of poultry available to Canadians increased by 1.5 per cent.

MORE National ARTICLES

Expect long passport lineups this week, post-strike immigration backlog: ministers

Expect long passport lineups this week, post-strike immigration backlog: ministers
Families minister Karina Gould says the job action did not create a significant backlog, as the federal government received only about 20 per cent of the typical volume of passport applications during the strike.

Expect long passport lineups this week, post-strike immigration backlog: ministers

Vancouver's April home sales down 16.5% from a year ago: board

Vancouver's April home sales down 16.5% from a year ago: board
The B.C. board says sales for the month totalled 2,741, almost 16 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average. The composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver hit $1,170,700 last month, down 7.4 per cent from a year ago but up 2.4 per cent from March.

Vancouver's April home sales down 16.5% from a year ago: board

Two men dead after boating incident off B.C. coast, RCMP say

Two men dead after boating incident off B.C. coast, RCMP say
The Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Victoria says it sent the Canadian Coast Guard to the area to join the search for the missing men Sunday morning. It says they were found and recovered about six hours later, around 1 p-m.

Two men dead after boating incident off B.C. coast, RCMP say

Driver of overpass crash in Abbotsford could face charges

Driver of overpass crash in Abbotsford could face charges
The collision, which involved equipment loaded on a truck striking the Peardonville Road overpass in Abbotsford yesterday, was captured on video. Highway Patrol says though there were no injuries, a car was struck by some debris from the overpass.

Driver of overpass crash in Abbotsford could face charges

Premier Eby says B.C. officials will brief Surrey mayor, council over police dispute

Premier Eby says B.C. officials will brief Surrey mayor, council over police dispute
Eby says he's spoken twice with Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke since Friday when the government recommended the city proceed with its transition to the Surrey Police Service rather than return to the RCMP.

Premier Eby says B.C. officials will brief Surrey mayor, council over police dispute

B.C. introduces exemptions for children, spouses living in 55-plus stratas

B.C. introduces exemptions for children, spouses living in 55-plus stratas
The B.C. government says it has now expanded the list of exemptions to allow those under 55 to remain at those properties to include their future children, dependants or partners.

B.C. introduces exemptions for children, spouses living in 55-plus stratas