Grocery Shopping

Grocery shopping has now taken on a life of its own. Before it was about picking up the items that you needed, some that you wanted, followed by a discussion about how expensive everything has gotten. Since the start of February, the focus has shifted for most Canadians, they now want to buy food made in Canada.   

Sadly, we are faced with a time of uncertainty. Until recently, I never thought about how much of the food on the grocery shelves is made in Canada. I just shopped and usually bought the most reasonable. Stores are now putting up signs "made in Canada" for easy purchase. We all know there are foods that Canada simply can't provide. For example, where would you get an orange in February in Canada. Thankfully we are not dependent on one country to import food. There are many countries that import food to Canada, and I assume they will make sure we have oranges in February.

Since the beginning of time, grocery shopping has always been a process. A continuous paper or digital list is made. Many people shop once a week, others more often, some less. Whatever day it is that you buy food; off you go with the list. I think a list is even more valuable now than ever before. With the cost of groceries, shoppers have to make sure they have what they need before they hit the junk food isle. Around the store you go as the cart fills to the top. I use self-check-out which means I pack my own groceries. The next step is to bring the food home and put it all away. At some point, you have to accept the blow your pocketbook just took. The sense of accomplishment is short lived as the process will start all over again in the near future.  

I think grocery shopping is a love/hate experience. I do not enjoy grocery shopping. In fact, I am getting so I don't enjoy shopping for anything. That includes my favorite stores. Dollar Tree has gone from $1.00 to $1.75 in one step, so it isn't as much fun as it used to be. Food in my $ stores, is now like buying at a convenience store. I am going to make Coop and Giant Tiger my food stop stores. Currently, the owners of Giant Tiger are local, and they are very supportive to the needs of the community. I want to support a store like that. Co-op is Co-op, always there. 

I can't imagine feeding a family with the food prices as they are. Especially a family of teenagers, they have bottomless pits. I have vivid memories of doing just that, 30 years ago. At that time, we raised our own meat, had a garden and I made my own bread and desserts. Many families don't have that option. It is hard to believe you can put $100 worth of groceries in one small bag. 

I don't have a Costco membership, nor will I ever. A "Costco Run", is a rare, yet fun experience for me. It begins in the parking lot; I love that they have large parking spots. To find one is like a seek and find and it is a rush to get there first. It is somewhat the same if you are filling up your car with gas. Costco members have the same look on their faces once they get behind their cart, somewhat similar to a race car driver. They are off and running and have their list complete in no time. A Costco store is certainly no frills. It is a steel frame with absolutely everything you could ever want under that one roof. On the way out of the store is a very efficient, strategically placed food vendor. I have heard that the Costco hot dogs and the ice cream are the best you will ever eat, and also cheap.  

I am guilty of not making sure I bought food made in Canada. If it ended up in my cart it was only by accident, I never checked. My question to myself and to others is, "why haven't we always made sure we bought Canadian made"? What a valuable lesson we have learned in all of this.