VANCOUVER -- If your grocery and eating habits have changed in the last two months, you’re not alone. According to a new poll from Angus Reid and Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab, Canadians are shopping in a different way.

With plexi-glass barriers, hand-sanitizer stations and line-ups, just going to the grocery story is a different kind of experience. But most of us are still going. Sixty-four per cent of those surveyed said they are still going to the grocery store themselves, but are doing larger shops and going less frequently. 

The number of people buying food online on a regular basis has tripled since the pandemic began, the survey found, and five per cent have switched entirely to online food shopping. Sylvain Charlebois, the scientific director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab, says the trend will likely continue. 

"I don't think it's going to stop in 2020,” he said. “More people will find it not only convenient to buy online, but also will find it safe as well."

That also applies to delivered meals. Apps like Skip The Dishes, GrubHub, DoorDash and UberEATS generated $1.5 billion in 2019, and Charlebois’ team expects in 2020, it will climb to $2.5 billion. 

Some of the habits we’re developing during the pandemic could stick. Nearly half of the respondents in the poll said they plan to cook more at home when the pandemic is done. The number was even higher among younger people; 55 per cent between the ages of 18 and 34 said they will be cooking at home more often even when restaurants return to normal.