Greetings everyone and welcome to spring. Golf outings, conferences and dinners are already happening and many trade events are starting to line up in the que, so I hope to see you out there soon.
The National Grocers Association (NGA) has stepped up its efforts on behalf of its membership and independent retailers across the country in their battle against the proposed Kroger-Albertsons merger. A television commercial recently released by NGA portrays independently owned food retailers as essential to providing access to fresh food and says they are being hampered in that mission by “big chains that are using their market share to squeeze suppliers and box out competition.” The 30-second spot, which contrasts images of people buying food with footage of abandoned grocery stores, appeals to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to exercise powers under existing laws that “have been ignored for a generation.” The commercial shows the exterior of a Walmart store, although the voiceover does not refer by name to the retailer. The spot concludes with a call for the agency to resurrect the Robinson-Patman Act, a Depression-era law that bars companies from charging competing buyers different prices for the same items. NGA says its members together operate almost 9,000 locations, with at least store in every congressional district. The organization has said the smaller grocers that comprise its membership face an uneven playing field in their efforts to compete with large chains. In particular, the association says “power buyers” use their scale to wring “discriminatory prices and more favorable supply terms, special package offerings and product availability” from suppliers, the association said in announcing the television spot.
“For decades, dominant firms in the grocery marketplace have leveraged their buying power to demand special treatment through access to products, promotions and better prices from suppliers that are not offered to independent community grocers,” NGA president and CEO Greg Ferrara said a statement. “This unchecked anticompetitive behavior leaves independent store owners and their customers with less choice, fewer options and paying more for goods and products.”
FTC said last November that it planned to step up its enforcement of a portion of the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914 that prohibits “unfair methods of competition.” The announcement drew praise from NGA and criticism from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, another business group. While NGA makes the case that the proposed Kroger-Albertsons combination would squeeze competition from the grocery market, executives of the two chains involved in the proposed merger have disputed that assertion. Speaking in November during a U.S. Senate hearing about the planned merger, Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran said marketplace forces would prevent the companies from taking unfair advantage of their position. “Muscle from retailers works for a short period of time. Manufacturers and suppliers always find a way around it,” Sankaran said.
The commercial urges FTC to enforce antitrust laws at a time when “Americans face higher prices [and] less choice and access to fresh food.”
Congratulations to RDD Associates as they’ve picked up the Citterio line of Italian specialty meats in the Metro New York/New Jersey market. The line will be managed by Chris Vuono at RDD.
In addition to the recent news about UNFI’s planned new Manchester, PA distribution center, the company said it has completed its eighth and largest solar array installation at a distribution center in in Howell, NJ (Monmouth County). In addition to the solar array, UNFI plans to finish LED lighting upgrades at 33 of its distribution centers by the end of the current fiscal year. These efforts support UNFI’s “Better For All” agenda and come at a time when sustainability is moving to the forefront of grocers’ and distributors’ initiatives.
The new solar array is nearly three times larger than UNFI’s previous installations, the company said. The 3.2-megawatt roof-mounted solar panel array is made up of 7,171 panels, which generate renewable electricity approximately equivalent to the Howell distribution center’s annualized energy demand, according to the announcement.
UNFI projects the system will produce around 3.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year, which will prevent approximately 2,700 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent released into the atmosphere each year.
UNFI cites the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator in determining that the solar installation’s environmental benefits are equivalent to the emissions of 524 U.S. homes’ electricity use for one year.
“This newest solar array, coupled with our current LED lighting projects at a majority of our distribution centers are expected to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions year-over-year and represent a milestone on our path to building a food system that is better for our people, communities, and the planet,” UNFI CEO Sandy Douglas said in a statement. “These efforts are also expected to reduce our operational costs and help us become more efficient, and that’s a positive for our business.”
UNFI aims to retrofit more than 30 of its distribution centers built prior to 2002 with the latest LED lighting by the end of the company’s current fiscal year. The company said these lighting updates are cost- and energy-efficient, providing a longer lifespan and operating at a lower temperature compared to traditional lighting. When the project is finished, all 56 of UNFI’s distribution centers will have LED lighting, which the company predicts will save it nearly 2 million kilowatt hours of electricity usage per year.
Already, UNFI’s installed LED lighting has reduced Scope 2 emissions and is helping the company reach its goal of reducing energy intensity in its distribution centers by 30 percent by 2030.
Previously, Krasdale Foods had been home to the largest solar power system in the Metro New York food industry, when in the summer of 2021, it installed more than 6,500 panels to the roof of its 325,000 square foot distribution center in the Hunts Point section of the Bronx. The 2.7-megawatt system was said to generate clean energy equivalent to offsetting 5.3 million pounds of carbon dioxide or removing 524 automobiles from the road annually.
The longest running indoor track and field event for girls and women kicked off with a registration rally at the ShopRite of Elizabeth (NJ) in mid-April. The Colgate Women’s Games, which help women and girls achieve their athletic potential and pursue their educational goals by competing for academic scholarships, was free and open to all.
“Colgate Women’s Games is in a league of its own. It is an influential mentoring and educational program just as much as it is an athletic competition. We thank ShopRite for joining us to support the Games and encourage more girls and women to participate in the 48th season,” said Daniel Fried, manager of corporate social responsibility for Colgate-Palmolive.
“The registration pep rally is a great way for ShopRite to celebrate the community’s participation in Colgate Women’s Games. The Games enrich the lives of girls and women through athletic competition and camaraderie, and we are excited to team with Colgate this year to help support the program,” said Claire Rossie, manager of corporate social responsibility for ShopRite. Great job by all!
And finally, I was really saddened to learn that one of the all-time good ones in our business had passed away recently. Ben Epstein died on April 2 at the age of 90. From the time I entered the food business in the mid-80s, Ben was one of the icons in the perishable realm. He was a larger-than-life figure in business and in stature and he carried it all with an acumen I hadn’t witnessed until then. He was a huge presence at the old Eastern Dairy-Deli Association and was the face of several specialty cheese companies until he decided in 1986 to open his own food brokerage company with his young son Andy. The new company, B&A Sales, took off right away thanks to Ben’s connections and knowledge and Andy’s enthusiasm and eagerness to learn the business. As the decades passed, Ben stepped back a bit and Andy continued to grow the company along the Eastern Seaboard with key help from his solid team of Kevin Czesak, Mark McFadden, et al. I regret not seeing Ben one last time before he passed so we could have swapped some old war stories. My deepest condolences go out to his wife of 67 years Charlotte and the rest of his family. May God hold him in the palm of his hand and grant him eternal peace.
As always, I hope to see you all out in the field and you can reach me at 201.250.2217 or [email protected].