This winter will see many post-secondary students tightening their belts in the face of a stagnant Canadian economy.
The low value of the Canadian dollar has, among other commodities, made food prices soar. We currently import 80 per cent of our fresh produce, which is bought in foreign dollars.
If you’ve been to a grocery store recently, you may have noticed cauliflower is reaching close to $10 per head. Other foods such as fruits have increased in price as well, which can also be attributed to smaller crop yields in places such as drought-stricken California. Textbooks imported into Canada could also cost students more.
Students will spend more on less as a result of this higher cost of living. It can mean that those just scraping by before to afford tuition and other costs could be placed in a dire financial situation. As a result, students working part-time jobs will be earning the same amount of money but with less purchasing power.
Food banks nationwide are already bracing for a spike in usage. Now would be a good time for universities and student associations to monitor how its food banks and poorest students are doing, and offer help to students who need it through further initiatives such as community food drives.
It would also be a good time to consider not raising tuition costs this spring as students adjust to the higher cost of living.
