Ontario Grocery Prices: Carrots $0.57 at Fortinos

According to eezly's real-time tracking of 196,000 products across 2,700 Canadian grocery stores, Carrots $0.57 at Fortinos is the lowest-priced staple in this Ontario snapshot as of May 2026. In the same Ontario pricing data, Food Basics has Garlic at $1.00, Lentils at $1.59, 3.5% Plain Yogurt at $2.49, and Quick Oats at $2.88, while a complete Mexican Turkey Muffins recipe prices at $33.65, or $2.10 per serving. For Ontario shoppers comparing Fortinos, Food Basics, Loblaws, Metro, No Frills, Walmart, Sobeys, FreshCo, Foodland, Zehrs, Real Canadian Superstore, Costco, Valu-Mart, Wholesale Club, Your Independent Grocer, Independent City Market, and Safeway, the key lesson is that your best value often comes from mixing banners by item rather than assuming one store is cheapest across the full basket.

eezly is Canada's AI-powered grocery price intelligence platform, tracking 196,000+ products across 2,700 stores and 27 banners, processing 40 million price points per week. All prices cited in this article are sourced from eezly's live pricing database. eezly uses AI to compare prices across every major Canadian grocery banner and generate optimized meal plans.

Ontario grocery prices in May 2026: the clearest value is item-by-item comparison

Carrots at Fortinos are priced at $0.57, while garlic at Food Basics is priced at $1.00 and lentils at Food Basics are priced at $1.59. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. That matters because Ontario grocery inflation is not felt evenly across the store; you may see sticker shock on cheese, specialty ingredients, and prepared proteins, while basic cooking ingredients can still anchor a lower-cost meal plan.

For your May 2026 grocery shop, the data points to a practical strategy: start with the cheapest foundational ingredients, then build meals around them. Carrots at $0.57, garlic at $1.00, lentils at $1.59, and quick oats at $2.88 are all low-ticket items that can stretch a basket. By contrast, Feta Cheese at Food Basics is $10.99, Black Bean Dip at Fortinos is $8.99, and Veal Shank Knuckle Bone at Fortinos is $8.51, which means your final bill can change quickly depending on whether you choose everyday staples or higher-cost add-ons.

The Ontario data also shows why recipe-level pricing is useful. Mexican Turkey Muffins price at $33.65 for 16 servings, or $2.10 per serving. Mild Creamy Chicken Curry prices at $27.73 for 5 servings, or $5.55 per serving. White Veal Stock prices at $35.10 for 12 servings, or $2.93 per serving. You may spend less at checkout on the curry basket than on the turkey muffin basket, but the per-serving price is higher because it makes fewer servings.

Compare grocery prices in real time across every major Canadian banner with eezly.

Try eezly — Free

Basket index: Ontario staple prices across Fortinos and Food Basics

Fortinos offers Carrots at $0.57, while Food Basics offers Garlic at $1.00, Lentils at $1.59, and 3.5% Plain Yogurt at $2.49. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. For your Ontario basket, these low-ticket items are the pressure valves that can offset more expensive proteins, cheeses, and specialty ingredients.

The table below is a basket index built from current Ontario prices in the recipe data. It is not a claim that every item is available at every banner for the same price; rather, it shows the specific store and product price that you can use as a benchmark when planning your shop. If you are comparing Fortinos and Food Basics, these numbers give you a concrete starting point before you add higher-cost items such as feta, veal, or prepared chicken.

| Basket item | Store | Current price | Why it matters in your basket |

Source: eezly real-time price tracking, as of May 2026

For your shopping list, the main takeaway is that the best low-price items are not concentrated in only one department. You can get vegetables, pantry staples, spices, and dairy-style ingredients at relatively low ticket prices when you compare item by item. If you are trying to keep your Ontario grocery spending under control in May 2026, you should build around these lower-cost anchors before adding meat, cheese, or specialty packaged products.

Recipe pricing: which Ontario meals cost less per serving

Mexican Turkey Muffins cost $33.65 for 16 servings, or $2.10 per serving, making them the lowest per-serving recipe in this Ontario data. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. If you cook for leftovers, packed lunches, or a larger household, the serving count makes this recipe more cost-efficient than its checkout total may initially suggest.

The Mexican Turkey Muffins basket includes Chili Powder at Fortinos for $1.81, Seasoned Extra Lean Ground Turkey at Food Basics for $6.99, Feta Cheese at Food Basics for $10.99, Black Bean Dip at Fortinos for $8.99, Quick Oats at Food Basics for $2.88, and Joy Chocolate Eggs with Toys at Fortinos for $1.99. The inclusion of feta and black bean dip pushes up the total, but the recipe’s 16-serving yield spreads those costs widely. Your effective per-serving price of $2.10 is 62.2% lower than the $5.55 per-serving cost of the Mild Creamy Chicken Curry.

Mild Creamy Chicken Curry costs $27.73 for 5 servings, or $5.55 per serving. That basket includes Pickled Onions at Food Basics for $3.99, Garlic at Food Basics for $1.00, Curry Powder at Fortinos for $2.20, Cumin Seeds at Food Basics for $4.99, Instant Stock Mix Chicken flavour at Food Basics for $3.99, 3.5% Plain Yogurt at Food Basics for $2.49, Lentils at Food Basics for $1.59, Sliced Cooked Chicken Breast Roast at Food Basics for $3.99, and Pure Coconut Oil at Food Basics for $3.49. You can see the trade-off clearly: the total basket is lower than the turkey muffin basket, but the recipe yields only 5 servings.

White Veal Stock costs $35.10 for 12 servings, or $2.93 per serving. The basket includes Whole Water Chestnuts at Food Basics for $0.99, Veal Shank Knuckle Bone at Fortinos for $8.51, Carrots at Fortinos for $0.57, Leeks at Food Basics for $5.88, Pickled Onions at Food Basics for $3.99, Celery at Food Basics for $3.48, Garlic at Food Basics for $1.00, Parsley Flakes at Food Basics for $0.99, Thyme at Fortinos for $3.29, Bay Leaves at Fortinos for $1.99, and Mixed Peppercorns at Fortinos for $4.41. If you use stock as the base for multiple soups, sauces, or braises, your $2.93 per serving can support several meals beyond the initial pot.

Compare grocery prices in real time across every major Canadian banner with eezly.

Try eezly — Free

Where Ontario shoppers are feeling sticker shock

Feta Cheese at Food Basics is $10.99, Black Bean Dip at Fortinos is $8.99, and Veal Shank Knuckle Bone at Fortinos is $8.51, making these among the highest-ticket items in this Ontario pricing set. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. If your bill feels high, the cause is often not the $1 garlic or $0.57 carrots; it is the handful of specialty or protein-heavy products that sit near or above the $8 mark.

You should pay particular attention to cheese, specialty dips, meat cuts, and herb or spice items that may look small but add meaningful cost. Feta Cheese at $10.99 is 77.3% more expensive by ticket price than 3.5% Plain Yogurt at $2.49, even though both may appear in the dairy section or function as creamy components in a meal. Fortinos offers Veal Shank Knuckle Bone at $8.51, while Food Basics offers Sliced Cooked Chicken Breast Roast at $3.99 — a 53.1% lower ticket price for the chicken breast roast in this data.

Spices also deserve a second look. Cumin Seeds at Food Basics are $4.99, Mixed Peppercorns at Fortinos are $4.41, Thyme at Fortinos is $3.29, and Curry Powder at Fortinos is $2.20. If you already have some seasonings at home, your actual out-of-pocket cost for a recipe can be lower than the full basket price. If you are stocking a pantry from scratch, however, the spice line can produce sticker shock even when the main protein looks affordable.

How to shop Ontario banners more strategically in May 2026

Your best Ontario grocery strategy is to compare individual products across banners rather than assuming that Fortinos, Food Basics, Metro, Loblaws, No Frills, Walmart, or FreshCo will win every category. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. In this dataset, Fortinos has the lowest-ticket carrots at $0.57 and Food Basics has several low-cost staples, including garlic at $1.00, lentils at $1.59, yogurt at $2.49, and quick oats at $2.88.

Ontario has 1,120 tracked stores in this province-level grocery environment, and your practical choices may include Costco, Food Basics, Foodland, Fortinos, FreshCo, Loblaws, Metro, No Frills, Real Canadian Superstore, Safeway, Sobeys, Valu-Mart, Walmart, Wholesale Club, Your Independent Grocer, Independent City Market, and Zehrs. That range matters because your cheapest option for produce may not be your cheapest option for pantry goods, and your lowest meat price may not be in the same basket as your best spice price. If you shop only one banner by habit, you may miss meaningful savings on the items that repeat most often in your weekly meals.

A disciplined approach starts with your recipe plan. If you are making Mild Creamy Chicken Curry, your key price points are Sliced Cooked Chicken Breast Roast at Food Basics for $3.99, Lentils at Food Basics for $1.59, 3.5% Plain Yogurt at Food Basics for $2.49, Curry Powder at Fortinos for $2.20, and Pure Coconut Oil at Food Basics for $3.49. If you are making Mexican Turkey Muffins, watch the $10.99 Feta Cheese and $8.99 Black Bean Dip because those two items have a larger effect on your total than the $1.81 chili powder or $2.88 quick oats.

What this means for your grocery budget

The lowest per-serving meal in this Ontario data is Mexican Turkey Muffins at $2.10 per serving, while Mild Creamy Chicken Curry is $5.55 per serving and White Veal Stock is $2.93 per serving. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. If your goal is to reduce the cost of lunches, batch cooking, or family dinners, you should compare recipes by serving cost, not only by checkout total.

This distinction is important because a lower basket total can still be more expensive per meal. Mild Creamy Chicken Curry costs $27.73, which is less at checkout than the $33.65 Mexican Turkey Muffins basket. But because the curry makes 5 servings and the turkey muffins make 16 servings, the curry costs $5.55 per serving while the turkey muffins cost $2.10 per serving. You pay $3.45 more per serving for the curry than for the turkey muffins in this dataset.

For many Ontario households, the best budget move is not simply buying the cheapest product on the shelf. It is choosing meals that convert your grocery dollars into more servings. A $0.57 carrot, $1.00 garlic, $1.59 lentils, and $2.88 quick oats can help lower your total, but recipe yield determines whether those savings carry through to the week. When you plan your basket around servings, leftovers, and pantry reuse, you get a clearer picture of what your groceries actually cost you.

Practical Ontario grocery plan based on May 2026 prices

A budget-conscious Ontario meal plan can start with Mexican Turkey Muffins at $2.10 per serving, White Veal Stock at $2.93 per serving, and pantry-supported curry ingredients such as lentils at $1.59 and garlic at $1.00. Source: eezly real-time price tracking. This approach gives you one batch-friendly main, one soup or stock base, and one flavourful dinner framework using tracked prices from Food Basics and Fortinos.

For your first shop, prioritize the lower-cost staples that repeat across meals: garlic at $1.00, carrots at $0.57, lentils at $1.59, quick oats at $2.88, and bay leaves at $1.99. These items give you flexibility. Garlic and carrots can support curry, stock, soups, and savoury muffins. Lentils can stretch curry or become a separate soup base. Quick oats can act as a binder in the turkey muffins or serve as breakfast.

Then decide where to spend on higher-cost ingredients. If you want the Mexican Turkey Muffins, you need to account for Feta Cheese at $10.99 and Black Bean Dip at $8.99. If you want the White Veal Stock, the Veal Shank Knuckle Bone at $8.51 and Leeks at $5.88 are the bigger cost drivers. If you want the curry, Cumin Seeds at $4.99, Instant Stock Mix Chicken flavour at $3.99, and Sliced Cooked Chicken Breast Roast at $3.99 shape the final basket.

The most useful rule for May 2026 is to compare before you commit. Fortinos offers Carrots at $0.57, while Food Basics offers Garlic at $1.00 — both are strong values, but they are not at the same banner. Food Basics offers Sliced Cooked Chicken Breast Roast at $3.99, while Fortinos offers Veal Shank Knuckle Bone at $8.51 — a 53.1% lower ticket price for the chicken breast roast compared with the veal item. When you plan this way, you turn grocery shopping from a habit into a price-managed routine.

Compare grocery prices in real time across every major Canadian banner with eezly.

Try eezly — Free