Save $4,400 a year on groceries?

If you could save over $4,000 on groceries each year would you? What if I told you, you already were thanks to modern agriculture technology.

Many people have rejected innovative practises like pesticides and genetic modification without realizing that thanks to modern technology Canadian’s would actually spend 55% more on their grocery bills each year. This breaks down to roughly $4,400 per household, per year and over $60 billion in Canada alone that is spent in extra income just on food.

Here in Canada, we are very fortunate to pay some of the lowest food prices – on average just under 10% of our annual incomes go to our grocery bills. Nigeria, for example, spends over half of its annual household incomes on groceries.

Why? How do modern farming practises help keep our food affordable?

Planting GMO crops allow farmers to grow healthier and hardier plants that can withstand more extreme weather conditions, and can use less water, pesticides, fertilizers etc to grow. Pesticides are used to protect our grains to ensure they survive past any threats from weeds, diseases or insects. Sustainable practises like reduced tillage, no-till planting, cover crops, crop rotations, and only applying pesticides and fertilizers when and where it’s needed allows the farmer to keep our land and surrounding environments healthy. Today, farmers are growing grains more efficiently and sustainably than ever before. They can now grow MORE on each acre of land and needing less overall farmland to grow enough. Having enough food in the fields, keeps food prices down because we have an abundant supply of grains going into our food system.

Without agriculture innovations, we would have to pay almost 31% more per year on bread, 47% more each year on fresh fruit, 52% more on fresh vegetables and nearly over 75% more, each year on just condiments, spices and vinegar alone.

Modern agriculture in Canada is helping to keep Canadian food affordable, and some of the safest and highest quality food in the world.

Looking for more information on modern plant science and biotechnology practises? Visit Helping Canada Grow for more facts and information!