Supermarket Perimeter - September 2024 - 6

the
WIRE
FDA recommends
20% salt reduction
The US Food and Drug
Administration has
issued draft guidance
for its Phase II approach
on sodium reduction,
which includes reducing
sodium intake among
Americans by 20% over
a three-year period to
an average of 2,750 mg
per person per day. The
Dietary Guidelines for
Americans recommends
limiting per-capita
sodium intake to
2,300 mg per day for
consumers age 14 and
older, but intake was
about 3,400 mg prior
to 2021, according to
the FDA.
The Phase II voluntary
sodium reduction goals
are intended to balance
the need for gradual
reductions in sodium
and what is known
about technical and
market constraints on
sodium reduction and
reformulation, according
to the FDA. The draft
guidance provides goals
that include both a target
mean concentration
and an upper-bound
concentration of
sodium for various food
categories. Sodium
intake reduction should
progress at a pace that
allows consumers to
adjust to the lower
amount of sodium in
their food, according to
the FDA.
The FDA's Phase I
approach was issued
in October 2021.
Preliminary data from
2022 showed about 40%
of the Phase I targets
" are very close to or have
already been reached, "
the FDA said. The Phase
I approach encouraged
the food industry to
reduce sodium levels in
a variety of processed,
packaged and prepared
foods since over 70% of
sodium intake in the US
population comes from
sodium added during
food manufacturing
and commercial food
preparation. The Phase
II approach will do
the same.
Value pricing helps
Walmart sales,
profits climb
Walmart continues to
benefit as consumers
across income levels,
including affluent
customers, are seeking
value when shopping
for food and other
products in stores or
online, President and
Chief Executive Officer
Doug McMillon said in
reporting fiscal 2025
second-quarter results.
Adjusted earnings per
share topped prior-year
EPS and the high end of
Wall Street's projection,
though reported net
income took a hit from
investment losses.
Overall revenue climbed
5% in constant currency,
with sales up in all three
operating units: Walmart
US, Sam's Club and
6 - SEPTEMBER 2024
supermarketperimeter.com
Walmart International.
The performance led the
world's largest retailer
to raise its full-year
guidance.
" We had another
good quarter, with
strong sales growth
and even stronger profit
growth, exceeding our
expectations, " McMillon
told analysts in a
conference call. " The
strength we saw for the
quarter was broad-based.
Our business outside
the US continues to lift
the total company in
terms of sales and profit
growth. "
Walmart gained
market share during the
second quarter, including
in the discretionary
category of general
merchandise, and
transaction counts and
unit volume rose across
markets, McMillon said.
Kroger fights back
against Albertson's
merger roadblock
The Kroger Co. filed a
motion on Aug. 19 for a
preliminary injunction
against the Federal
Trade Commission's
(FTC) administrative
proceeding challenging
the retailer's merger deal
with Albertson's Co. Inc.
In February, FTC
sought to block the
$25 billion deal struck
between Kroger
and Albertson's that
it believed to be
anticompetitive by
filing a lawsuit in federal
court as well as an
administrative complaint
scheduled to go before
an administrative judge.
Last month, both
Kroger and Albertsons
agreed to halt the merger
until the courts finalized
its decision on the
pending deal.
According to Kroger,
the administrative
proceeding violates
constitutional
protections, namely
those in Article II and
Article III.
Based on a previous
Supreme Court ruling
in Free Enterprise Fund
v. Public Company
Accounting Oversight
Board, Kroger claims FTC
violates Article II because
the administrative
law judge presiding
over the proceeding
is not removable by
the president of the
United States.
The second argument
Kroger makes against
the FTC's violations
of the Constitution
is based on a more
recent Supreme Court
decision. The company
argues that by seeking
to adjudicate Kroger's
private rights to contract
with another private
party administratively
through the executive
branch rather than in
the independent judicial
branch, FTC violates
Article III. This standard
was reinforced this past
term by the Supreme
Court in SEC v. Jarkesy,
which demonstrated
private rights -
including life, liberty
and property - may be
adjudicated only by the
federal judiciary and
not by administrative
agencies.
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Supermarket Perimeter - September 2024

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