App developed in North Bay, Ont., aims to lower grocery bills

A new cellphone app developed in North Bay allows users to scan their area and find the lowest food prices on offer where they live, along with other features.

A free cellphone app developed in North Bay, Ont., is designed to give shoppers some relief at the checkout line amid rising food prices.

The latest Food Price Report found that the average family of four will pay almost more than $1,000 for food this year -- more than $17,500 in total.

To help shoppers find the best deal, software development firm One Red Maple Inc. has designed a new grocery savings app called ‘Gofer.run.’

The app is an AI-powered tool that analyzes prices across nearby grocery stores and shows users where each item is cheapest.

“We find the average family of four, we’ll see about 25 per cent on their groceries just by buying the same product at the right place,” said Mark Sherry, cofounder of One Red Maple Inc.

Users can upload or create a grocery list, and the app automatically shows where each item costs less and provides a clear breakdown of savings.

“You put in your postal code, and you put in your radius -- like 10 kilometres from your postal code, or how far are you willing to drive -- and it pulls all the stores in that radius and then we check all those stores,” Sherry said.

The app doesn’t require the user’s name or email address.

The app comes at a time when a new survey suggests many Canadian households are cutting back, or going into debt, just to afford basic meals.

A new survey from debt-relief firm Spergel found that 60.6 per cent skipped meals or reduced portions in the past six months; 53.2 per cent used credit or other high-interest loans for groceries in the past six months; and 40.5 per cent delayed paying a bill so they could buy groceries.

The January 2026 Consumer Price Index said Canada leads the G7 in terms of food inflation at 6.3 per cent, following increases of more than 25 per cent over the past five years.

Beyond price comparison, the app integrates recipe-to-list functionality and grocery store flyer previews.

Users can search for items by snapping a picture of something in their pantry, have the app digitize their handwritten grocery list, or have a shared list that family members can add items to.

The app also highlights Canadian products, among several other features.

“You can go on anybody’s website and you can check the price of bananas at every single store,” Sherry said.

“But to do that for 50 items and then make a list of what stores to go to optimize your spend is nearly impossible.”

Gofer.run is free to use and is available for download on iOS and Android stores for use across Canada, although only in English.