Every October, millions of Canadian families gather around the Thanksgiving table to share turkey, potatoes, and pumpkin pie.

Beyond being a cherished tradition, this annual meal has also become a window into the state of our food economy.

At the Agri-Food Analytics Lab, we publish a yearly cost analysis of a typical Thanksgiving dinner for four, drawing on thousands of retail data points from across the country. The results for 2025 are in and they tell a story of stability, with subtle but important shifts beneath the surface.

This year, the cost of preparing a Thanksgiving dinner for four is $32.48, compared with $32.30 in 2024. That’s an increase of just 18 cents, or less than 1%. In an era where Canadians have grown accustomed to headline-grabbing spikes in grocery bills, a flat holiday meal cost comes as a relief.

But the apparent calm hides some notable changes in how the dollars break down. The turkey, the centrepiece of any Thanksgiving dinner, is cheaper this year. A seven-pound frozen bird costs $10.43, down from $11.69 in 2024. Carrots, another staple, have seen a sharp decline—nearly half the price compared to last year, at just $0.91 per........

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