In the grocery business, as in most any sector of the economy, some years are defined by large-scale combinations with the potential to dramatically reshape the industry, while others are marked by less-impactful deals that nonetheless leave a lasting impression.

2025 decidedly falls into the latter category.

This past year will not be remembered for grocery mergers or acquisitions anywhere near as spectacular as the ultimately unsuccessful effort by Kroger and Albertsons to become a nationwide supermarket behemoth. Instead, 2025 saw an assortment of smaller transactions that still impacted the balance of power in the industry and laid the groundwork for continued change in the years to come.

C&S Wholesale Grocers was perhaps the most active player on the grocery M&A front in 2025. The company — which had been set to acquire hundreds of supermarkets as part of the Kroger-Albertsons deal — pressed ahead with its quest to bolster its store fleet with a pair of transactions, including its nearly $1.8 billion acquisition of SpartanNash and its participation in the investment group that bought 170 Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket stores and other assets from Aldi. 

The family that owns Schnuck Markets, meanwhile, bought more than 50 stores arrayed under two Wisconsin chains. The Schnuck family also established a new holding company designed to keep the stores’ brands distinct while still allowing them to gain the benefits of being part of a larger group.

Other M&A activity in the industry in 2025 included the sale of several small groups of Winn-Dixie locations, along with deals that involved only a handful of stores.  

As 2025 comes to a close, here’s a rundown of the most significant grocery M&A deals of the year.