Colorado’s Two Largest Grocery Chains Will Not Merge at This Time

Two of the biggest grocery store chains were set to merge into a single company. Now, it appears that King Soopers and Safeway will not become one. According to 9 News, federal and state judges have halted the Kroger and Albertsons merger on Tuesday, December 10, 2024.

The first halt to the merger came by United States District Court Judge, Adrienne Nelson. Judge Nelson issued a preliminary injunction that blocked the merger in Portland, Oregon. A second injunction came from Judge Marshall Ferguson in Seattle, Washington issuing a permanent injunction in the state of Washington.

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The case of the merger between Kroger and Albertsons could now move to the Federal Trade Commission. Colorado has an ongoing trial to block the merger of the two grocers. The Federal Trade Commission has argued that the merger between Kroger and Albertsons would eliminate competition and raise prices for consumers in 22 states where the two grocery companies operate. The Federal Trade Commission also says that the merger would not only hurt the consumers but also the employees since Kroger and Albertsons would no longer compete to hire employees.

Kroger currently operates 2,800 stores in 35 states and Albertsons operates 2,273 stores in 34 states. Between the two grocery companies, there are an estimated 710,000 employees.