We all experienced a hard-to-swallow price surge at the gas pumps last week. According to news sources, the average high was 1.39 cents/L. I was relieved to see almost a 10 cents drop at the gas stations the other day, but I also felt anger because we couldn’t take advantage of this lower price that day – our gas tank was full.
Well, I am finding it hard to swallow another price increase – the price of local garlic. Garlic is a very popular herb, yet I have never seen it on sale.
A few weeks ago, I visited our local supermarkets in Aurora and was amazed to see the price difference between garlic from China and garlic harvested here in Canada, classified as organic. The choice is mine: I can buy 1 kg of garlic from China for $4.99/kg or buy 250 grams of garlic from Canada for $4.99, which translates to $19.96/kg. I could also wait for my parents and mother-in-law to give me some later in the season, or check out the Aurora Farmers Market for better prices.
Not only did the garlic from Canada not look good in the store, but the shoots were coming out.
Sometimes I wonder why we have to pay more for organic products. Personally, I think it is overrated. It seems like we are paying for the certification. How useful is certification? I don’t know, but wouldn’t it be better if everything homegrown was organic regardless of certification?
To answer my title question, no, it is definitely not gas-related.
