Here's how much more it's expected to cost to feed a family of 4 in Canada next year

A new report by more than 30 researchers is estimating how much food will cost in 2024 and how much money it will take to feed families.

A new report predicts food products in Canada will have an average inflation rate increase between 2.5 and 4.5 per cent next year, down from the average five to seven per cent in 2023.

More than 30 experts from Dalhousie University, the University of Guelph, the University of Saskatchewan and the University of British Columbia collaborated on the annual report predicting food inflation in Canada, which was published on Thursday.

The report aims to review the year in food policy and costs and predict the rate of inflation for the next year.

One expert says 2024 will be important because it is the first full year where prices are expected to "normalize" since the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This is a good news report," Sylvain Charlebois, one of the authors of the publication and director of Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab, told CTVNews.ca in an interview. "I think people should feel positive about 2024."

In 2022, the report estimated the overall food price increases would be between five to seven per cent — the latest data from Statistics Canada pegs the food inflation rate at 5.9 per cent.

In the latest edition of the annual report, the authors believe the overall rate of inflation will be lower in 2024, falling to somewhere between 2.5 and 4.5 per cent.