Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to our witnesses here: Mr. Boswell, Ms. Pratt and Mr. Durocher. Thank you very much for your attendance and the information you're providing.
I, too, was going to focus a bit on the grocery sector. As I look around in some of the communities in my riding in southeast Manitoba, I've noticed that a lot of the small grocers really struggle. Some of them close because they just can't seem to make it. I also noticed that the people who have to use a lot of the smaller grocery stores and outlets are people who have mobility challenges and can't drive to the big box centres. The pricing is always more expensive in the smaller outlets.
I'm wondering if it's not similar to the issue that Ms. Dancho asked about with regard to the financial institutions and whether there's an Interac funnel that needs to be addressed. My understanding is that a lot of the small grocers have to buy from a limited number of distribution centres, and these are often owned by the larger players in the industry.
Can you comment on that and on what can be done? The cost of food is something that everybody talks about.