PORTLAND, Ore. — The chief executive officers of Kroger and Albertsons were set to testify in federal court Wednesday, midway through a three-week hearing in which the grocery chains have defended their proposed merger from the U.S. government's attempt to stop it.The two companies proposed what would be the largest supermarket merger in U.S. history in October 2022. The Federal Trade Commission sued to prevent the $24.6 billion deal and has asked a U.S.
Albertsons has argued the deal could actually bolster union jobs, since many of it and Kroger’s competitors, like Walmart, have few unionized workers.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.Speaking in 2022 before the U.S.