What to know
- Seventy-nine per cent of Canadian parents surveyed said they’ve changed how they buy food for their kids’ lunches this year to manage everyday costs.
- Forty-one per cent said they’re switching to lower-cost grocery brands, while 38 per cent are packing lunches at home more often.
- Nearly one-quarter of parents said they’re cutting back on lunch variety, while 20 per cent are buying fewer snacks and treats.
- British Columbia saw the largest share of parents changing their lunch-buying habits, at 87 per cent, followed by Ontario at 79 per cent.
- Too Good to Go Canada’s Luke Slinger says buying in bulk and repurposing leftovers could help families stretch their grocery budgets.
As Canadian students continue to re-adapt to their academic routines, a new survey is suggesting their lunches might also be different this year, as parents work to manage everyday costs.
The survey conducted by Too Good to Go Canada found that 79 per cent of parents across Canada have changed how they buy their children’s lunches this year in order to accommodate living costs.
About 24 per cent of those respondents said they’ve had to cut back on lunch variety this year, while 20 per cent said they are buying their kids less snacks and treats.
Meanwhile, 41 per cent said they are adapting by switching to lower-cost grocery brands, 38 per cent said they have started packing lunches at home more often, and 36 per cent said they are starting to buy food in bulk.
“Most families are having to make compromises right now in the way that they’re buying for school lunches. Some are choosing a narrow variety of food. Some are choosing maybe some less snacks,” Luke Slinger, Head of Key Accounts at Too Good to Go Canada, told Now Toronto.
“We can clearly see from this that it’s getting tougher and tougher to take the grocery budgets and stretch it. And that’s part of a pressure that I think every parent is feeling, specifically within their lunchboxes.”
The findings come a week after a different report found that more than half of Canadian parents have helped their adult children financially over the last year.
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Lunch habits changing from coast to coast
Lunch habits appear to be changing all across the country, according to the survey, especially in certain regions.
British Columbia was the province to register the biggest changes, with 87 per cent of parents saying they’ve adopted new lunch purchasing habits, and 55 per cent saying they are choosing cheaper brands.
Ontario came in second place, with 79 per cent saying they’ve changed habits, and 38 per cent saying they are packing lunches from home more often.
Atlantic Canada came in third place, with 77 per cent saying they changed lunch habits, and 49 per cent saying they’ve started buying in bulk.
Other strategies to manage costs
As Canadians look for new ways to cut costs, Slinger said there are other strategies parents can try to make their kids’ lunches easier on their pockets.
Firstly, as mentioned by survey respondents, Slinger said purchasing in bulk might indeed be a good idea to cut costs. This strategy also allows parents to be able to keep purchasing the foods their children already like or prefer for cheaper, when properly stored.
Another strategy that could help is adapting leftovers into snacks or lunches. In partnership with Ziplock, Too Good to Go Canada has launched Surprise Seconds, a campaign that helps parents find ways to repurpose leftover meals and avoid waste.
“Dinner extras might then become wraps the next day for sandwiches. So, you just got to store them promptly and sort of keep track of what’s happening with them,” Slinger said.
In addition, Too Good to Go’s marketplace also includes a list of grocery stores, restaurants, and cafes where parents can purchase end-of-day food supplies for a discounted price. Taking advantage of these and other promotions or deals available could also be a strategy when cutting costs.
