PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — More than two dozen members of Congress are working to stop a merger between Kroger and Albertsons.
After filing an amicus brief with their congressional peers, Washington's U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal and Oregon's U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden -- both Democrats -- held a news conference outside a northeast Portland Fred Meyer.
“It is time to recall this lousy merger idea,” said Wyden.
The Federal Trade Commission has sued to stop the merger.
“It combines the two largest pharmacies and supermarket operators in the state of Oregon. It would give just one company control of more than 30% of Oregon's pharmacies and more than half of our grocery sales in Portland,” said Wyden.
According to an Oregon Health Authorityreportlast year, the merger between Kroger and Albertsons would give them 29% of the prescription drug market in Oregon. That’s more than double the market share of each of its three main competitors.
“Kroger and Albertsons runs the risk of driving up grocery prices for Oregonians and making it much harder for Oregonians to find a pharmacy,” said Wyden.
"It is disappointing that elected officials continue to misinform their constituents and attempt to influence the independent judicial process that is underway," a Kroger spokesperson told KATU in a statement. "The reality is that Kroger joining with Albertsons will mean lower prices and more choices for more customers in more communities, long-term job security, higher wages and more industry-leading benefits for associates, and a strong unionized workforce."
Wyden is also concerned about how the merger could impact others in the market.
“The merger also reduces the power of Oregon's small farmers and growers and other small businesses because they picked up clout over the years by being able to negotiate the price of their goods,” he said.
In response, Kroger said that matters would be worse without the merger.
“If the merger is blocked, the non-union retailers like Walmart and Amazon will become even more powerful and unaccountable,” it said.
That’s something that a local food and commercial workers union, UFCW555, agrees with. KATU spoke with a union representative back in February about the potential merger.
“Kroger has said, and C&S has said, they're going to maintain or not push us on collective bargaining agreements, so those are going to stay in place. Our members’ wages, working conditions, health care, retirement, that's all gonna stay in place,” said Miles Eshaia, a spokesperson for UFCW555.
The merger would affect more than 600 stores across the country.
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