Opening Statement to the Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry : Food Security
Speech
Remarks by Mike Hollingworth, Acting Deputy Commissioner, Competition Promotion Branch
Meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry
March 12, 2026
Ottawa, Ontario
Good morning, Madam Chair and Honourable Senators – Thank you for having us today.
My name is Mike Hollingworth, and I’m the Acting Deputy Commissioner of the Competition Promotion Branch at the Competition Bureau. I am joined today by my colleague, Melissa Fisher, Deputy Commissioner of the Bureau’s Mergers Directorate.
The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that protects and promotes competition for the benefit of Canadian consumers and businesses. We administer and enforce Canada's Competition Act, a law of general application that applies to every sector of the economy.
More competition means lower costs and greater opportunity for Canadians. It drives productivity and innovation and helps make everyday goods and services more affordable.
The Bureau has a dual enforcement and advocacy role under our legislation. As an enforcer, we review mergers and investigate anti-competitive business practices like abuse of dominance, price fixing, and deceptive marketing. As an advocate, we conduct market studies and advise policymakers on how to design competition-friendly rules and regulations.
With respect to the committee’s study, you’re covering an important issue with the topic of food security. We know that Canadians are feeling financial strain across many aspects of their daily lives, especially food. When we prioritize our work at the Bureau, be it in enforcement or advocacy, affordability is a key focus.
Many things affect food security. Competition is an important factor, but it is one of many.
This is something that we studied in our 2023 market study of the retail grocery market. The study focused on barriers that are limiting competition and harming consumers.
Our study found that Canada’s grocery industry is concentrated, with most Canadians buying their groceries in stores owned by five grocery giants—Loblaws, Sobeys, Metro, Costco, and Walmart. Our study highlighted barriers to competition, such as property controls blocking the opening of new grocery stores, and areas of innovation in the industry, such as online grocers and delivery services.
We have also taken enforcement actions in the retail grocery industry. We have been investigating the use of property controls in the Canadian grocery industry for some time, and commenced formal investigations into their use by Sobeys’ and Loblaws’. Since then, Loblaws publicly committed to end its use of property controls, a commitment that the Bureau is monitoring.
As part of this enforcement work, Empire Company Limited agreed to remove a property control that restricted retail grocery competition in Crowsnest Pass, Alberta. The Bureau found that the restriction, in place since 2017, protected Empire from competition by ensuring it would be the only grocery store in the area.
We also review mergers throughout the food supply chain. We have acted to protect competition in grain handling, the supply of crop inputs, such as seeds, fertilizers, and insecticides, and grocery retail, among other areas. We remain vigilant when reviewing transactions in this space as we enforce a stronger Competition Act.
The Competition Act was strengthened in recent years through three significant rounds of amendments addressing everything from merger review, to civil and criminal anti-competitive conduct, to the Bureau’s investigative tools. The Bureau will continue to prioritize issues of affordability in its work, including in the areas of food and groceries, as it uses all the tools at its disposal.
We are happy to be able to answer any questions you may have today. Before doing so, I would note that the law requires the Bureau to conduct its investigations in private and to keep confidential the information we have. This obligation may prevent us from discussing certain facets of our investigations and work or even the existence of certain investigations.
Thank you for having us today, and we look forward to your questions.