Latest Stories — Food & Power

2023 Year End Round Up

A recap of some of our biggest stories of 2023 and a look ahead to antimonopoly action expected in 2024.

USDA and DOJ Take On Deceptive, Exclusionary Poultry Contracts

USDA and DOJ collaborate to sue Koch Foods for restrictive contract termination fees. USDA also finalizes poultry contract transparency rule. Farmers say keep the foot on the gas.

Poultry & Livestock, PolicyClaire KellowayNovember 16, 2023Packers and Stockyards, poultry, tournament, transparency, DOJ, USDA

President Biden Criticizes Corporate Consolidation on “Barnstorming” Tour While Farmers Await Further Action

President Biden spoke on the harms of corporate consolidation at a Minnesota farm to kick off a rural tour. His administration still has work to do to challenge corporate power, especially in the meat industry.

PolicyClaire KellowayNovember 2, 2023Biden

Why Albertsons and Kroger's Spinoff Deal Won’t Work

Checking in on antitrust review of Kroger and Albertson’s proposed merger, one year later.

“The Meat of the Future” Risks Capture by Today’s Monopolists

Policy makers have a chance to create an open, competitive, and fair cellular meat industry. But early investments by venture capital and conventional meat could shape this new market in Big Ag’s image.

Antitrust Enforcers Draft New Guidelines for Approving Mergers. Here’s What It Means for the Food Industry.

DOJ and FTC set new standards for reviewing mergers and acquisitions that take a stronger stance against concentrated market structures, vertical integration, harms to suppliers, and more.

Policy, EnforcementClaire KellowayAugust 10, 2023FTC, DOJ, merger guidelines, mergers, vertical integration, Secondary Feature

New Legislation Could Help Break Up the Visa-Mastercard Duopoly

Visa and Mastercard’s duopoly over credit networks has driven up swipe fees and raised costs for small grocers. A new bill wants to give stores more options for accepting credit cards.

Policy, RetailAnnie SholarJune 29, 2023Credit Cards, Visa, grocery, restaurant

Farm Credit Seeks Exemption from CFPB Small Business Lending Transparency Rule

The Farm Credit system is the largest lender in agriculture. It wants an exemption from a new CFPB sunshine rule aimed at identifying discrimination in small business lending.

PolicyClaire KellowayJune 1, 2023farm credit, credit, CFPB, Racial Equity

Report Analyzes How Public Food Purchasing Can Promote Food Justice

A new report by the HEAL Food Alliance and Food Chain Workers Alliance draws on a decade of organizing to identify how public food purchasing programs can better advance racial equity and worker organizing.

As Food Prices Keep Rising, Study Finds Market Power Drove Pandemic Inflation

A new economic study makes the case that concentrated market power helped corporations pull off pandemic price hikes and reap record profits.

Colorado Passes First Tractor Right to Repair Law

Colorado will be the first state to require farm equipment makers to share or sell all the tools, manuals, and software that farmers need to fix their tractors and combines. 16 other states have introduced similar bills.

PolicyClaire KellowayApril 20, 2023Right to Repair, Tractors, John Deere, Secondary Feature

Report: Big Ag Soil Carbon Programs Entrench Corporate Power And Delay Real Climate Action

A new report by the Open Markets Institute and Friends of the Earth argues that corporate-led soil carbon offset programs risk increasing greenhouse gas emissions while entrenching agribusiness market power.

Policy, Seeds & AgrichemicalsClaire KellowayMarch 9, 2023Carbon Markets, cargill, Bayer, climate change