Industry Pushes to Block Kroger-Albertsons Planned Merger

Western Growers joined with the California Fresh Fruit Association and Colorado Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association to recently submit comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on the proposed merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons. While the companies’ investors might see a profitable upside, farmers have good reason to be concerned this deal, worth nearly $25 billion, is bad for producers. The two retail giants combined would account for 15.6 percent of the U.S. grocery market share, second only to Walmart at 21 percent.

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Jason Resnick

Train-the-Trainer Virtual Workshop

Prepare your HR Professionals with this four-hour Harassment, Discrimination, and Abusive Conduct training designed to equip them with the knowledge they need to comply with the requirements outlined in SB-1343, AB-1825, AB-2053, SB-396, SB-400, and SB-188. Participants will also gain a deeper understanding of how sexual harassment affects health, productivity, quality, and service. By the end of this training, individuals will be able to effectively:

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Anna Bilderbach

USDA Assistance Available for Small Agriculture Business’ Food Safety Expenses

The Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops Program (FSCSC) provides financial assistance to specialty crop operations for costs incurred obtaining or renewing food safety certifications. The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) is making $200 million available to specialty growers to offset the cost of food safety expenses through the FSCSC program. Applications for the FSCSC program for 2022 are due Jan. 31, 2023. Applications for 2023 will open Feb. 1, 2023 and close on Jan. 31, 2024.

The FSA lists the following expenses that are eligible for reimbursement:

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Kara Timmins

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