Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth WarrenThe politics of an independent Fed Hillicon Valley — Dems press Amazon on warehouse collapse Politicians and celebrities who have tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of the holidays MORE (D-Mass.) said in a letter to leadership at Kroger, Albertson’s and Publix that the grocery store chains are profiting off of struggling American families during the pandemic.
“While many Americans faced the loss of jobs, homes, and loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic, grocery companies like yours saw immense gains through record sales and profits,” Warren wrote.
“Your company, and the other major grocers who reaped the benefits of a turbulent 2020, appear to be passing costs onto consumers to preserve your pandemic gains, and even taking advantage of inflation to add greater burdens,” she said.
The senator added that the stores “continued to earn massive profits while pushing grocery cost increases onto consumers” in 2021.
“Your companies had a choice: they could have retained lower prices for consumers and properly protected and compensated their workers, or granted massive payouts to top executives and investors,” Warren said. “It is disappointing that you chose not to put your customers and workers first.”
The Hill has reached out to Kroger, Albertson’s and Publix for comment.
Warren’s letter comes after inflation in the U.S. hit the highest rate seen in decades.
Consumer prices in November surged to 6.8 percent, marking the highest annual inflation rate seen since 1982 as supply chains have struggled during the pandemic.
Prices for food were notably up 6.1 percent for the year including 6.4 percent for food from grocery stores and 5.8 percent at restaurants.
Earlier this month, President Biden
Joe BidenFederal class action lawsuit filed over treatment of Haitian migrants Staffer who had contact with Biden tests positive for COVID-19 Overnight Defense & National Security — New rules try to tackle extremism in the ranks MORE said that he believes the U.S. is currently at “the peak” of inflation.
“It’s a real bump in the road. It does affect families when you walk into a grocery store and you’re paying more for whatever you’re purchasing — it matters,” Biden told CNN.
At the time, Biden added that he believed inflation would drop with the Build Back Better Act, a plan that was effectively killed when Sen. Joe Manchin
Joe ManchinOn The Money — Dems lay blame for Build Back Better blowup McConnell: Manchin’s opposition to Biden plan ‘great shot in the arm for the country’ Harris says ‘stakes are too high’ for Build Back Better to be about Manchin MORE (D- W.Va.) announced on Sunday that he would not support it.