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Supermarkets Sue in Bid to Stop Mamdani’s Plan for Cheaper Groceries (novaramedia.com)
submitted 2 weeks ago by to c/usa@lemmy.ml
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Zohran Mamdani’s plan to create city-run grocery stores to help New Yorkers struggling with the cost of living is being challenged in court by supermarkets, who say they won’t be able to compete with the stores’ low prices.

The New York City mayor plans to create five municipally owned stores on city-owned property by 2029 that will offer a 30% discount on goods like meat, dairy, and fruit and vegetables.

The lawsuit – led by the National Supermarket Association and supported by other groups and private stores – says Mamdani’s policy would create an unfair business environment. It also alleges that the administration failed to conduct a “serious analysis” of how local business would be impacted by the move.

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[+] -10 points 2 weeks ago (5 children)

Grocery store profit margins are 1-3% of sale price on most items and tend to be low on staples. I don't disagree with reducing prices through subsidies, but I wonder whether a city run food stamp suppliment might be more effective than opening stores that undercut an industry that has pretty low profit margins.

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  • [–] 28 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

    Grocery stores should be more invested in stopping the gouging from their suppliers then. The farmers are getting shafted, the consumer is getting shafted, the Grocery store is doing fine and the middlemen are laughing to the bank. There are only 4 meatpackers nationwide, Driscoll is nearly all you can find for berries.

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  • [–] [S] 11 points 2 weeks ago

    That's not true grocery stores sell stuff like vegetables for far more expensive than they buy them.

    This is of course not taking into account all the potential waste that they might have. But especially on a lot of healthy items, grocery stores are not giving great prices.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 weeks ago

    Some sources would be nice.

    Also, a band-aid solution is never going to fix the problem. The emotional relief and increase in morale with lower prices will be worth a lot more than undercutting an "industry" that puts profits first.

    The industry should adapt to the needs of the people, not the other way around.

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