Response to FTC report on grocery supply chain disruptions during COVID-19

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For media inquiries, please contact: Reggie Rucker, ILSR Communications Director

“We hope that this study will be followed in short order by renewed enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act,” Stacy Mitchell says in response to FTC findings on grocery supply chain disruptions.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 21, 2024) – Stacy Mitchell, co-executive director at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR), made the following statement in response to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) report on grocery supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The FTC’s findings provide more evidence of how large retailers exploit their power over suppliers to harm smaller grocers, eliminate competition, and drive up prices. When Walmart can flex its muscle over grocery manufacturers to commandeer scarce supplies and secure unwarranted discounts, communities served by independent grocers are left with empty shelves and higher prices — or worse, no grocery store at all. We hope that this study will be followed in short order by renewed enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act and other action to level the playing field for small grocers and food companies.”

For more from ILSR on large grocery retailers and market power issues, see:

• Boxed Out: How Big Retailers are Flexing Their Supply Chain Power to Kill Off Small Businesses, Institute for Local Self-Reliance, Sept. 2022
• The Real Reason Your Groceries Are Getting So Expensive, New York Times, May 2023.

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