Rice, beans, flour, chicken… there was a time when you could buy these everyday groceries and more for only $10 - but those days are long gone. And while there are plenty of reasons the cost of living has gone up, one advocate told us today he believes that now, the hike in prices is frequent and unjust. Courtney Menzies went price checking herself and has this story.

Have you noticed that after you've done your monthly grocery shopping, your wallet is a little bit emptier than it was last month? Well, you're not alone, since many are still complaining that things were already hard, and now they're almost impossible.

A lot of the blame is placed on grocery storeowners who many believe are slowly hiking up prices of their products. One advocate says he's seen for himself that prices are higher than usual.

Moses Sulph, Advocate
"They have the noodles for 85 cents a pack and I think that is unjust because the cost of these goods keep going up. The powder milk is 5.75 a pound, ridiculous, I can't believe it, the beans is $2.50 a pound and those sort of things. There's a constant increase in the cost of goods especially since the pandemic which is a time when our Belizean people have had the less economic activity in our history where many of our people have lost their jobs, their income, and they just feel like have no mercy at all, they just keep on increasing the cost of goods and services on a monthly basis."

We wanted to hear it directly from the consumer's mouth, so we asked a shopper her thoughts as she walked out of an Asian store on Central American Boulevard.

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"I come buy chicken, one small chicken is 7 change when it used to be 5 change and flour gone up too, everything gone up."

Courtney Menzies:
"You've seen this at more than one stores?"

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"Yeah, especially at 88."

Reporter:
"And is it mostly Chinese stores?"

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"Mostly Chinese because the regular grocery store right at Jane usher is at the same. The pampers gone up, because I was paying about $10.50 for a pack of pampers, it gone way to $11.50. And even feed, the cereal, I used to pay about $2.99 and it gone to $3.50. The rice gone up…"

Reporter:
"And it's the worse time."

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"It's the worse time because everything dih take lick, some of us aren't working."

Reporter:
"But you choose to buy in these stores."

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"I go where is reasonable."

Courtney Menzies:
"So you shop around?"

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"I shop around because I bake, that's how I make my money, and the flour gone way up."

Courtney Menzies:
"Do your hear similar complaints from your family."

Shanda, Belize City Resident
"Yeah residents say a lot, because even one of my friend, she went to the store, and she bought groceries and it's a little bit of thing and she done spend like $300. A little bit of things, she said she wanted to give them back."

And while we may be inclined to give the storeowners the benefit of doubt, Sulph believes there is no adequate excuse or explanation.

Moses Sulph, Advocate
"They can't use the justification that it is because GST has increased because GST had not increased, there has been no new taxes, there has been no increase in taxes so why are they constantly raising the cost of goods in their store? This is something that the Belizean people are taking a lick already and is continuing to take a lick."

Now, he's asking for the government to step in.

Moses Sulph, Advocate
"I'm hoping that they will put some measures in place, possible a consumer protection agency that can go out and make sure that these things are no consistently happening as they are because nobody salary going up and the cost of goods in these stores consistently go up. I am also hoping that we can have an engagement from our local politicians to try and see how they can try and create opportunities of local supermarkets in the neighborhoods so we don't see this constant increase."

The Belize Flour Mill has reached out to us to confirm that they have not changed their prices since last September - and that change was actually a reduction in the price of La Gitana flour. He went on to suggest that some stores are price gouging.

Additionally, management says that every time the price is changed, the mill publishes a list which is posted in the sales office to ensure transparency and fairness.

Channel 7