The Friday Checkout is a weekly column providing more insight on the news, rounding up the announcements you may have missed and sharing what’s to come.
Shoppers flock to Walmart to save money, but now an advocacy group that has been critical of what it claims are unfair cost advantages large retailers enjoy is hoping to convince the public that the savings they enjoy come at a price.
The group, More Perfect Union, released a video this week that focuses on a lawsuit the FTC filed last January against PepsiCo that claims the CPG offers lower prices to Walmart than to other retailers. The Trump administration dismissed the suit in May, but More Perfect Union is taking its case to the public by shedding light on the suit’s recently unsealed details.
According to the recently unredacted suit, the government had concluded that PepsiCo pressured Food Lion to raise prices on Pepsi products in order to ensure that Walmart could charge less. The suit claimed PepsiCo did this through a multi-year campaign that included reducing promotional spending for Food Lion while also raising its wholesale costs.
The Federal Trade Commission’s case was built around the Robinson-Patman Act, a Depression-era law designed to block suppliers from offering preferential terms to larger retailers that it has steered away from enforcing for decades.
Walmart is PepsiCo’s largest customer. The CPG said it generated 14% of its consolidated net revenue through Walmart in 2025, noting that losing those sales would have a “material adverse effect” on its financial performance.
In a sign that More Perfect Union’s message might be resonating, the video has already drawn more than 1 million views on YouTube. Last month, meanwhile, several members of the U.S. Senate asked the FTC and the Department of Justice to clamp down on pricing practices that “harm small and medium-sized businesses, particularly in the grocery industry.”
In case you missed it
Dietary needs driving grocery trends
Foods that support specific nutritional needs, such as gut health, protein intake and GLP-1s, make up the majority of the grocery trends outlined by United Natural Foods, Inc. Minimally processed, traditional fats and fiber-rich ingredients are some of the key food attributes that appeal to shoppers, the company said.
UNFI revealed its trend predictions after its 2026 Spring and Summer Selling Show in Orlando, Florida, where it showcased nearly 50 new private label products, including healthy snacks, high-protein and fiber-rich options.
One less legal headache for Kroger
A federal judge in Colorado dismissed a proposed class-action lawsuit against Kroger and Albertsons, which claimed that the grocers ran afoul of antitrust laws with their hiring practices during a strike, Law360 reported.
The case’s dismissal marks one less legal battle for Kroger to worry about. However, the supermarket operator is still in a legal battle with Albertsons over their failed merger.
Drinking up the booze perks
Giant Eagle is rolling out an alcohol cashback program from Swiftly, the tech vendor announced this week. The grocer’s customers can digitally access brand-funded promotions on boozy products. Swiftly claims that the program can lift alcohol sales by 30%.
Impulse find
Supermarkets are the new foxholes
Amid a streak of below-freezing temperatures at the end of January, one fox in the Philadelphia area found a new place to shelter: the local grocery store. WPVI shared an adorable photo of the furry visitor curled up on the shelf housing paper household products at The Giant Company’s store in Broomall.
The fox was at the store for at least an hour before animal control arrived, the news station reported.
