Current:Home > BackKroger and Albertsons prepare to make a final federal court argument for their merger-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Kroger and Albertsons prepare to make a final federal court argument for their merger
View Date:2025-01-09 21:38:40
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Kroger and Albertsons were expected to present their closing arguments Tuesday in a U.S. District Court hearing on their proposed merger, which the federal government hopes to block.
Over the course of the three-week hearing in Portland, Oregon, the two companies have insisted that merging would allow them to lower prices and more effectively compete with retail giants like Walmart and Amazon.
The Federal Trade Commission argued that the deal would eliminate competition and lead to higher food prices for already struggling customers.
In 2022, Kroger and Albertsons proposed what would be the largest supermarket merger in U.S. history. But the FTC sued to prevent the $24.6 billion deal.
The FTC wants U.S. District Judge Adrienne Nelson to issue a preliminary injunction that would block the deal while its complaint goes before an in-house administrative law judge.
In testimony during the hearing, the CEOs of Albertsons and Kroger said the merged company would lower prices in a bid to retain customers. They also argued that the merger would boost growth, bolstering stores and union jobs.
FTC attorneys have noted that the two supermarket chains currently compete in 22 states, closely matching each other on price, quality, private label products and services like store pickup. Shoppers benefit from that competition and would lose those benefits if the merger is allowed to proceed, they said.
The FTC and labor union leaders also argued that workers’ wages and benefits would decline if Kroger and Albertsons no longer compete with each other. They also expressed concern that potential store closures could create so-called food and pharmacy “deserts” for consumers.
Under the deal, Kroger and Albertsons would sell 579 stores in places where their locations overlap to C&S Wholesale Grocers, a New Hampshire-based supplier to independent supermarkets that also owns the Grand Union and Piggly Wiggly store brands.
The FTC says C&S is ill-prepared to take on those stores. Laura Hall, the FTC’s senior trial counsel, cited internal documents that indicated C&S executives were skeptical about the quality of the stores they would get and may want the option to sell or close them.
But C&S CEO Eric Winn testified that he thinks his company can be successful in the venture.
The attorneys general of Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Wyoming all joined the case on the FTC’s side. Washington and Colorado filed separate cases in state courts seeking to block the merger.
Kroger, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, operates 2,800 stores in 35 states, including brands like Ralphs, Smith’s and Harris Teeter. Albertsons, based in Boise, Idaho, operates 2,273 stores in 34 states, including brands like Safeway, Jewel Osco and Shaw’s. Together, the companies employ around 710,000 people.
If Judge Nelson agrees to issue the injunction, the FTC plans to hold the in-house hearings starting Oct. 1. Kroger sued the FTC last month, however, alleging the agency’s internal proceedings are unconstitutional and saying it wants the merger’s merits decided in federal court. That lawsuit was filed in federal court in Ohio.
The attorneys general of Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Wyoming all joined the FTC’s lawsuit on the commission’s side. Washington and Colorado filed separate cases in state courts seeking to block the merger. Washington’s case opened in Seattle on Monday. ___
Durbin reported from Detroit.
veryGood! (5)
Related
- Multi-State Offshore Wind Pact Weakened After Connecticut Sits Out First Selection
- It's a new world for college football players: You want the NIL cash? Take the criticism.
- Rapper Fatman Scoop died of heart disease, medical examiner says
- Anna Delvey's 'DWTS' run ends in elimination: She never stood a chance against critics.
- New Pentagon report on UFOs includes hundreds of new incidents but no evidence of aliens
- X releases its first transparency report since Elon Musk’s takeover
- Baltimore City Is Investing in Wetlands Restoration For Climate Resiliency and Adaptation. Scientists Warn About Unintended Consequences
- DWTS' Artem Chigvintsev Breaks Silence on Domestic Violence Arrest and Nikki Garcia Divorce
- Jamie Lee Curtis and Don Lemon quit X, formerly Twitter: 'Time for me to leave'
- Funds are cutting aid for women seeking abortions as costs rise
Ranking
- The Daily Money: Mattel's 'Wicked' mistake
- UNLV quarterback sitting out rest of season due to unfulfilled 'commitments'
- Travis James Mullis executed in Texas for murder of his 3-month-old son Alijah: 'I'm ready'
- Pirates DFA Rowdy Tellez, four plate appearances away from $200,000 bonus
- Trump hammered Democrats on transgender issues. Now the party is at odds on a response
- New York court is set to hear Donald Trump’s appeal of his $489 million civil fraud verdict
- Spotted: Katie Holmes With a $35 Tote & Rocking the Barn Jacket Trend (Plus Affordable Picks Under $100)
- Meta unveils cheaper VR headset, AI updates and shows off prototype for holographic AR glasses
Recommendation
-
Wicked's Ethan Slater Shares How Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo Set the Tone on Set
-
Alabama Jailer pleads guilty in case of incarcerated man who froze to death
-
Celebrate local flavors with tickets to the USA TODAY Wine & Food Experience
-
Alabama man declared 'mentally ill' faces execution by method witnesses called 'horrific'
-
Tesla issues 6th Cybertruck recall this year, with over 2,400 vehicles affected
-
DOJ's Visa antitrust lawsuit alleges debit card company monopoly
-
Kim Porter’s children say she didn’t write bestselling memoir about Diddy
-
Father of teenage suspect in North Carolina mass shooting pleads guilty to gun storage crime