The Albertsons logo is displayed at an Albertsons supermarket on August 26, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
The two companies proposed what would be the largest supermarket merger in U.S. history in October 2022, after Kroger agreed to purchase Albertsons. But the Federal Trade Commission sued to prevent the $24.6 billion deal, alleging it would eliminate competition and lead to higher food prices for already struggling customers.
An FTC lawyer pointed to a written statement that Sankaran provided to the U.S. Senate in 2022 when testifying about the merger, in which he said his company was “in excellent financial condition.” Sankaran said the market and certain conditions had changed since then. According to Kroger and Albertsons company documents referred to by FTC lawyers on Wednesday, the two companies are primary rivals in multiple regions, from southern California to the Portland metropolitan area. A Kroger attorney countered by saying that Walmart remains Kroger’s largest competitor in a majority of markets around the country.