Inflation has been rough on everyone. We’ve especially been feeling the pain when we go to the grocery store. It’s not unheard of to walk out with two bags of groceries and spending nearly $100. Since the pandemic, some retailers have been accused of price gouging while others swear they are just adjusting with supply issues. However, we now have proof that one major grocery chain has admitted to price gouging.
Andy Groff, Kroger’s senior director for pricing, admitted to it during an FTC hearing earlier this week. He was questioned about an email he sent to another Kroger exec stating that
…on milk and eggs, retail inflation has been significantly higher than cost inflation.
A report from Financial Times says the grocery industry [as a whole] became more profitable during the pandemic, and has remained that way since.
Many economists say that this isn’t a surprise because most executives were speaking on this during financial calls in 2021. All we have now is an admission to it.
“Kroger Co. hiked prices on milk and eggs more than needed to account for inflation, the company’s top pricing executive testified”
The thing is, execs all over the economy were saying this stuff on their earning calls back in 2021. This was not a secret.https://t.co/5MhPf9mML4
— Rakeen Mabud (@rakeen_mabud) August 28, 2024
So why the admission to begin with? Because Kroger is wanting to buy Albertson’s. The FTC argues that if the two merge, this will eliminate competitive pricing for consumers, and instead prices will continue to go up. The FTC argues that the merger would also make working conditions worse for hundreds of thousands of employees.
SOURCE: Common Dreams
