“What’s the deal with inflation??” Jerry Seinfeld asks.

Well Jerry, inflation is having its biggest moment in the spotlight since the movie Jaws first debuted in theatres back in the mid 1970s.

And just like that pesky great white, the menacing Inflation is taking a big bite. But this time the target is on consumers’ wallets, drastically reducing their spending power as the cost of living significantly outpaces increases in their average incomes.

For an Economics undergrad like myself who also dabbled in financial advising, the idea of inflation is nothing new.

As an investor, you need to make sure that your rate of return on your personal investments is actually higher than inflation or you are in turn losing money as the value of money decreases.

However, in the CPG industry, inflation has historically been a good thing and a sign of category health with dollar growth outpacing tonnage gains. Usually, resulting in greater profit margins.

But, just like the historic consumer changes we experienced during the first two years of the pandemic, the tides have risen high again with inflationary waves pushing consumers to make tough decisions with their wallets, especially at the shelf.

Check out these key Canadian CPG Inflation articles to learn more:

element 54 inflation Series Part IV: Where Canadians are cutting spend

How Canadians are stretching their grocery dollars while trying to stay healthy (CBC News)

Private Label: An Inflationary Inevitability? (Numerator)

To buy or not to buy: How did inflation affect people’s grocery shopping habits? (Upsiide)