The supply of meat in Canada’s grocery stores has been less than in previous years, but that has less to do with the COVID-19 pandemic and more to do with climate change.

That’s according to Janet Music, a researcher at Dalhousie University.

She says that lessened supply is part of the reason why consumers are seeing increased prices.

Music points to conditions on the prairies over the last year as an example of why supply has gone down.

She says there were “drought-like” conditions.

Because of that, she says farmers had to keep smaller heards because they couldn’t afford to feed and water them, which in tern reduced the supply of meat and helped increase prices.