FTC sues to block Kroger Albertsons grocery store merger

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said Monday that it is suing to block the merger of Kroger and Albertsons, saying the combination of the two major grocers would result in higher prices for shoppers and lower wages for workers.

In a release, the FTC said it issued an administrative complaint and authorized a lawsuit in federal court to stop Kroger’s $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons, which would create one of the largest grocers in the country. A bipartisan group of nine attorneys general has joined the court complaint: from Arizona, California, Washington D.C., Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Wyoming.

“Kroger’s acquisition of Albertsons would lead to additional grocery price hikes for everyday goods, further exacerbating the financial strain consumers across the country face today,” said Henry Liu, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. “Essential grocery store workers would also suffer under this deal, facing the threat of their wages dwindling, benefits diminishing, and their working conditions deteriorating.”

Kroger said in a statement that blocking the deal “will actually harm the very people the FTC purports to serve: America’s consumers and workers.”

“The FTC’s decision makes it more likely that America’s consumers will see higher food prices and fewer grocery stores at a time when communities across the country are already facing high inflation and food deserts,” the company said in a statement.

Albertsons said in a statement that federal regulators are disregarding the growing dominance of larger retailers like Walmart, Amazon and Costco, and said the move will strengthen them.

“We are disappointed that the FTC continues to use the same outdated view of the U.S. grocery industry it used 20 years ago, and we look forward to presenting our arguments in Court,” it said in a statement.

Kroger and Albertsons’ agreement has been stuck in a holding pattern for more than a year while federal and state regulators scrutinize the merger. The companies announced the proposed deal in October 2022, and said by teaming up, the grocers would be able to better compete with larger retailers.

The FTC argued the supermarket merger would harm shoppers and workers at a time when the price of food and many everyday items has risen. The Biden administration has been skeptical of a range of mergers, and the White House has made consumer…