The Informed Shopper: What Grocery Prices Taught Canadians

Grocery prices have not dropped. But Dr. Sylvain Charlebois says Canadians have stopped being caught off guard by them, and that shift matters. The panic that defined grocery shopping four years ago has given way to something different. Dr. Sylvain Charlebois says new numbers from his team show consumers are adapting. They arrive at the store knowing what things should cost. That homework is producing a more capable, more informed shopper than existed at the height of the crisis. The deal-driven behaviour shows up in the data and on the floor. Sale bins at the meat counter empty fast. Full-price shelves go untouched. Dr. Sylvain Charlebois says fewer sticker shock moments is not a sign prices are better. It is a sign people are. Topics: grocery prices Canada, sticker shock, informed consumers, food professor podcast, deal shopping GUEST: Dr. Sylvain Charlebois | @foodprofessor Originally aired on 2026-04-30