Thank you, Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Medline, for being here with us today as we discuss these important issues of food inflation and the cost of food for Canadians.
The current government promised Canadians that they would lower the price of food for Canadians by Thanksgiving, and they broke that promise. You mentioned in your opening remarks that you have put price freezes on some additional 1,700 products to keep those prices static until at least 2024. I've heard from some suppliers that they're not allowed to ask for price increases regardless of whether their costs go up.
I have a couple of questions. Is it standard practice to freeze prices at this time of year? What should consumers be preparing for in 2024, when the price freeze is lifted? How much are food prices going to go up?
Also, could you clarify? You mentioned that it's just a price freeze on packaged products. Does that include fresh produce and meats?