Kroger and Albertsons say their merger will help lower food prices for struggling consumers. Not everyone is convinced.

The roughly $25 billion planned merger of Kroger and Albertsons, unveiled in October with much fanfare, promised a new entity that would “serve America with fresh, affordable food.”

“The industry chose to enrich a small group of investors with generous handouts rather than keep prices stable on everything from bread to baby formula,” said Zelnick. “Even less competition under this proposed deal will only lead to more unfettered corporate greed at the expense of millions of consumers — and that’s why it deserves serious scrutiny from Congress.”

Don’t miss: Why did inflation surge to a 40-year high? Here are 4 causes of the worst monetary-policy mistake in years. “Our ability to deliver value to customers, communities and shareholders is rooted in our business model that emphasizes lowering prices to expand our customer base,” a spokesperson wrote in emailed comments.

In its fourth-quarter 2021 earnings call, for example, CFO Sharon L. McCollam credited “retail price inflation” as contributing to strong results. The dividend could become a “massive improper giveaway to certain shareholders,” said Karl Racine, attorney general for the District of Columbia, in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Wednesday. Paying that to shareholders could weaken Albertsons’ ability to compete in a “very, very tough marketplace” should the merger fail to go through, Racine added.

But the companies have already been aggressive and active acquirers of smaller retailers, with at least $19.5 billion in deals since 1998, according to data crunched by the New York Times. The biggest deal was Albertsons’ $9.4 billion takeover of Safeway in 2014.

Sickening. While we are all so beside ourselves on how we are gonna eat

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