Maple Leaf Foods plans to raise prices again early next year, CEO says in earnings call

Maple Leaf raised prices earlier this year to help offset higher costs — the second such price increase in a year — but it hasn't been enough to mitigate rising expenses.

Company says it is dealing with higher fuel and poultry prices, on top of general inflation

Natalie Stechyson · CBC News

· Posted: Nov 05, 2026 1:01 PM EST | Last Updated: 1 hour ago

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There's more bad news coming your way in the grocery store.

The head of Maple Leaf Foods, one of Canada's leading prepared meats and poultry producers, says the company plans to hike its prices — again.

In a third-quarter earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Curtis Frank told analysts the company is dealing with higher fuel and poultry prices, on top of general inflation.

Maple Leaf raised prices earlier this year to help offset higher costs — the second such price increase in a year — but it hasn't been enough to mitigate rising expenses.

"We've seen more inflation enter the business than we have expected. That's accelerating," Frank said.

"We do have plans to adjust our prices in Q1," he added, noting that the company hasn't yet announced the price changes to customers, so it would be premature to comment on them further.

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Shoppers have been dealing with persistent high food prices thanks to a combination of factors including climate change, fuel costs, tariffs and retailer pricing. Overall, grocery prices have increased 33 per cent since September 2020, according to Statistics Canada's most recent inflation numbers.

Meat has been behind much of the push. Beef prices have skyrocketed, for instance — ground beef cost on average $9.18/kg in September 2020, according to Statistics Canada monthly retail data, and by September 2026, it cost $16.92. And a striploin that cost $20.73/kg in September 2020 now costs about $35.74/kg.

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Chicken, often considered a cheaper protein alternative, has also faced higher prices thanks in part to increasing demand and limited supply, although not to the same extent as beef. Chicken breasts cost on average $14.48/kg in September, compared to $12.03 in September 2020. Thighs increased to $13.36/kg from $9.60 during that same time period.

Poultry farmers have raised prices for live birds by about three per cent in the fourth quarter, "with very short advance notice," explained Frank.

"[That] is eight per cent year-over-year, which is a pretty material move in the poultry business," the Maple Leaf Foods CEO added.

CEO cites rising costs of feed and fuel

In addition, fuel surcharges have gone up 17 per cent since the second quarter, which Frank also called a "pretty material change."

"Those are really the two components — feed and fuel," he said. "Inflation and agricultural commodities that are a direct implication of what we've seen from a conflict situation in the world."

The continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz stemming from the war in the Middle East has disrupted oil shipments from the Gulf region, driving prices for fuel and other critical inputs, such as fertilizer and animal feed, higher.

That's on top of general inflation "in damn near everything else: labour, packaging and ingredients," Frank said.

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Maple Leaf Foods is far from the first company to recently announce price increases or changes to its products to offset rising costs. The world's top consumer goods and food companies, from Coca-Cola and Procter & Gamble, to Nestle and Reckitt, have all warned of further price hikes next year.

In September, soup-maker Campbell's also announced it would be implementing more price increases. And just this last week, cereal producer Kellogg's revealed it had changed its recipe in the U.K., swapping out whole rice grains for rice flour due to "changing weather conditions" affecting the quality and availability of rice.

Meanwhile, Canadian food bank usage hit record highs this year. And a new report from the Salvation Army says nearly one in three Canadians is skipping or reducing meals because they can't afford groceries.

Volunteers are shown Tuesday at the Daily Bread Food Bank in Etobicoke, Ont. The charity released its annual report, Who's Hungry, this week, saying that one in eight children in Toronto now relies on food banks — nearly double the rate of 2022. (Alex Lupul/CBC)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Natalie Stechyson has been a writer and editor at CBC News since 2021. She covers stories on social trends, families, gender, human interest, as well as general news. She's worked as a journalist since 2009, with stints at the Globe and Mail and Postmedia News, among others. Before joining CBC News, she was the parents editor at HuffPost Canada, where she won a silver Canadian Online Publishing Award for her work on pregnancy loss. You can reach her at natalie.stechyson@cbc.ca.