Wawa-news.com Local and Regional News
January 26, 2026
Ottawa, Ontario
The global landscape is rapidly changing, leaving economies, businesses, and workers under a cloud of uncertainty. In response, Canada’s new government is focused on what we can control: building a stronger economy to make life more affordable for Canadians. To that end, we are securing new trade and investment partnerships abroad and building our strength at home – to create good career opportunities with higher wages for Canadians.
Our plan is moving Canada’s economy from reliance to resilience, though some of the biggest long-term payoffs of this transformation will take time to be felt. To ensure Canadians have the support they need right now, the government has introduced a series of new measures to bring down costs – including cutting taxes for 22 million Canadians, supercharging homebuilding, and protecting and expanding vital social programs.
To build on that progress, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, today introduced new measures to make groceries and other essentials more affordable. To bring down your costs, Canada’s new government is:
- Putting more money back in Canadians’ pockets
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The government is introducing the new Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit – formerly the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Credit. We are increasing its amount by 25% for five years beginning in July 2026.
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In addition to that, we are providing a one-time payment, equivalent to a 50% increase this year.
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Combined, this means that a family of four will receive up to $1,890 this year, and about $1,400 a year for the next four years; and a single person will receive up to $950 this year, and about $700 a year for the next four years.
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The new Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit will provide additional, significant support for more than 12 million Canadians.
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- Tackling food insecurity, supporting producers, and strengthening supply chains
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The government is setting aside $500 million from the Strategic Response Fund to help businesses address the costs of supply chain disruptions without passing those costs on to Canadians at the checkout line.
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For the same purpose, the government will create a $150 million Food Security Fund under the existing Regional Tariff Response Initiative for small and medium enterprises and the organisations that support them.
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To lower the cost of food production, we are introducing immediate expensing for greenhouse buildings. This allows producers to fully write off greenhouses acquired on or after November 4, 2025, and that become available for use before 2030. This measure supports increased domestic supply and investment in food production over the medium-term.
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To ease immediate pressures with food banks, the government is providing $20 million to the Local Food Infrastructure Fund. This supports food banks and other national, regional, and local organisations to deliver more nutritious food to families in need.
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To tackle the root causes of food insecurity, we are developing a National Food Security Strategy – one that strengthens domestic food production and improves access to affordable, nutritious food.
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This strategy will also include measures to implement unit price labelling and support the work of the Competition Bureau in monitoring and enforcing competition in the market, including food supply chains.
Our government is focused on building a stronger economy – to create more career opportunities and higher wages. In parallel, we are bringing down costs to make life more affordable. That’s how we’ll empower more Canadians with greater certainty, security, and prosperity – now, and into the future.
- PM Carney announces new measures to make groceries & other essentials more affordable - January 26, 2026
- PM Carney builds resilient partnerships & attracts new investments at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting - January 22, 2026
- Carney établit des partenariats résilients et attire de nouveaux investissements à la réunion annuelle du Forum économique mondial - January 22, 2026
