In July, WholeFoods Merchandising Editor Jay Jacobowitz, President and Founder of Retail Insights, explained the significance of a Colorado District Court ruling on a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and eight states against the proposed mergen between grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons. Now, Kroger and Albertsons have been ordered to immediately stop their plans to merge, halting the $25 billion deal.
The news comes after Judge Adrienne Nelson of the U.S. District Court in Portland, OR, ruled in favor of the FTC's request for a preliminary injunction. The decision follows a nearly monthlong trial in which the FTC declared the merging of Kroger and Albertsons would cause harm to consumers and workers if it was allowed to proceed. Experts say this ruling has likely ended the business merger as the Judge noted that “supermarkets are distinct from other grocery retailers” and that “the merger would lead to undue market concentration in multiple geographic markets in both the supermarkets and large format stores markets that would presumptively lessen competition.”
The latest update
On Wednesday, December 11, Albertsons announced it would be moving forward with a lawsuit against Kroger, citing the grocery chain refused to divest the assets necessary for antitrust approval, rejected stronger divestiture buyers, passed over regulator feedback, and did not make enough of an effort to secure regulatory approval for the merger agreement. In a statement issued by Albertsons' general counsel, Tom Moriarty, “Kroger’s self-serving conduct, taken at the expense of Albertsons and the agreed transaction, has harmed Albertsons’ shareholders, associates and consumers."
Kroger has issued its own statement claiming it was Albertsons who is to blame for “repeated intentional material breaches and interference throughout the merger process.”
For more on this developing news story visit AP News.
