In connection to what Mrs. Simard said, we have introduced La Coop fédérée to you. That company has a network, $6 billion in sales and a 90-year history. Ninety years ago, cooperatives were created with the help of the agriculture, land and forestry department's regional agrologist or the village priest. To start up, a cooperative needs someone to organize the collective entrepreneurship. Studies show that those companies have a better survival rate, but the start-up process is less straight-forward than when entrepreneurs have an idea, acquire some money and create the company themselves. Their idea is sometimes poor, and the company disappears.
Cooperatives are based on a collective need that requires organization. As you were told earlier, Canada's economy needs cooperatives and social economy, but cooperatives need help starting up. Once they have taken off—like La Coop fédérée—they no longer need assistance to operate. As a company, La Coop fédérée can take on the world. Through Olymel, we sell in 50 countries, but 90 years ago, La Coop fédérée could not do that. Ninety years ago, it needed help to start up its cooperatives.