Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in town to visit Cambridge MP Bryan May and take a trip to a local grocery store Friday afternoon.
Trudeau took the owners and staff of Desi Food Mart on Hespeler Road by surprise as he showed up during a pop in to the city.
"I found out maybe an hour before he arrived," said Desi Food Mart owner, Gurpratap Singh. "We were told it was going to be someone from the ministry and prepare, but we didn't expect it to be him,"
Trudeau walked up and down the aisles of the store meeting with the owners and stopping to take photos with anyone who asked.
May thanked the PM for stopping by and wishing everyone a happy thanksgiving and meeting with the locals.
"This was a great opportunity to bring him to Cambridge, to an independent grocer," said May. "This is what he does, it's great to see."
The federal government recently promised to hold large grocery store CEOs accountable for profiting off the backs of the Canadian people during the pandemic.
May thinks this is a great way for the leader of the government to get out and connect with the people and see the issues smaller independent stores are facing.
"We want to do everything we can to support local, but it's important that we recognize there is a massive challenge with food pricing all across Canada," added May. "We want to make sure that we are doing everything we possibly can to to make life as affordable as possible for all Canadians."
Singh also mentioned he was able to talk to Trudeau and voice his concerns about importing laws and fees making it harder for his business to operate.
"We try to bring in things as cheap as possible for the community here, but the country that we buy from sets the price and then importing fees on top of that. It can be a lot," he said.
Trudeau was in Kitchener at the Oktoberfest kick off earlier in the day and parts of Toronto during the week.
"He has the power to get people excited," said Singh. "Everyone in there was so happy to see him."
