Rising cost of living drives students away from steep grocery prices

In the weird weather of this January, I can’t help but be reminded of the start of the fall semester.

September can be a magical time in university. New people, clubs, ideas and classes that don’t take attendance; it can sound like a dream come true. Better yet, with university often comes a degree of independence. Living away from home for the first time can be a major change to some people’s psyche. And with new-found independence, so go old dietary constraints. Goodbye, meatloaf and hello, Dominos (uni code and all). What can be better than pizza and ol’ Milwaukee at 1:30 a.m.?

After working hard over the summer, chances are you’ve saved up a nice bundle of cash and you’re feeling flush with money. A night out here and a pizza ordered there don’t exactly come across as lavish expenses, yet as the semester grinds on, those pizzas become more of a luxury and the money that you’ve saved up over the course of the summer is starting to run out a little faster than you thought it would. So by October and November, you’re starting to weigh the cost of milk and eggs, and whether passing on lunch is a good idea.

At this point, you’re ready to swallow your pride and you do what more and more students at school are starting to do: register for the Campus Food Bank. In fact, usage of the food bank has seen an increase in its use over the past year. Coupled with the steadily rising cost of living in Edmonton, rising tuition and an economic slowdown, this makes the cost of living around campus more expensive than ever before.

Within walking distance of campus, there are only really a handful of grocery options: the campus Sobeys and the Safeway. And if you’re really willing to walk, there’s the No Frills and the Save-On Foods at the far east end of Whyte Avenue. Looking for good prices can be a full-time job.

Groceries are expensive.

No shit. Everyone knows that groceries are expensive. In fact, I don’t think there’s ever been a time when people have said “man, groceries are cheap!” It’s one of those things that just keeps rising and rising. Finding a budget and sticking to it can be difficult, but it helps keep your bank balance intact and a few worries off your plate.

Now that it’s January, the funds from the summer are starting to run out and this is the point in the year when food bank usage peaks. If you want to help your fellow students, then please take the time to drop off some non-perishable food items at the campus food bank in SUB. In the future, however, there needs to be more of an emphasis on making students aware of the resources at their disposal instead. Week of Welcome is the perfect opportunity to help adjust new students to their new realities and more of an emphasis should be placed on helping new students to manage their finances.

After all, new students will grow to learn classroom etiquette from the judgement of their peers. Money management can be a little less forgiving.