Albertsons has given up on its merger with Kroger and is suing the grocery chain, saying it didn’t do enough to secure regulatory approval for the $24.6 billion agreement.
The move comes after U.S. District Court Judge Adrienne Nelson of Oregon temporarily blocked the merger between grocery chains Kroger and Albertsons, which would have had a significant impact on grocery-buying in the Portland metro area.
The Kroger chain includes Safeway, Albertson and QFC.
Nelson issued a preliminary injunction against the merger on Tuesday afternoon, Dec. 10. The Federal Trade Commission previously argued the merger would reduce competition and increase food costs for consumers.
Kroger’s $25 billion dollar plan to acquire Albertsons would have created a $200 billion company with about 5,000 stores in 48 states.
It would have been the biggest supermarket merger in U.S. history.
In July 2024, Kroger-Albertsons released a list of stores in the Portland metro area that they had expected to sell to a New Hampshire-based chain, C&S Wholesale Grocers, as part of a nationwide, $2.9 billion deal.