The average family of four in Huron and Perth counties is spending just over $1,000 a month on groceries.
That's according to a report from Huron Perth Public Health. The report, called "The Real Cost of Eating in Huron and Perth," shows that an average family spends $249 per week on food, for a total of $1,076 per month.
HPPH Registered Dietitian Candace Cunningham says the higher cost of housing is forcing some families to look at ways to shrink their grocery bills. She suggests having a plan before going to the grocery store can lead to savings.
"[By] meal planning so that you know what you're getting when you go to the grocery store, so you don't over shop," she said. "That can also decrease food waste. You can easily look in your cupboard to what food you already have for meals that you're planning, so that your grocery bill is a little bit less.”
And while there are steps that can be taken to save money on food, Cunningham said that's not a long term solution. She said no matter how much knowledge you have about what constitutes a healthy diet, if you don't have an income that allows you to buy that food, it's not much help.
The report suggested there are structural improvements that can be made that would allow people to buy healthy food in appropriate amounts.
“Increasing our minimum wage, employers offering a living wage. We could offer basic income guarantees that had really good results during the pilot study that was conducted," she said. "We can increase social assistance rates, disability rates.”
Cunningham also suggests affordable child care, subsidized housing and subsidized transportation would also help to close that gap and allow people to buy the food that need to be healthy.