TORONTO – For Sylvie Gagné, peppers, tomatoes, and lettuce growing in her backyard offer some relief from the pressure of grocery bills that have climbed sharply since 2019.

Grocery prices have soared by roughly 30 per cent since 2019, according to a report from TD Bank. To address those soaring costs, Ottawa unveiled the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit earlier this year, a revamped version of the GST/HST credit that includes a one-time top-up, which began going out Friday.