Can’t have their favorite place taken over by capitalists.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A group of Democrats in Congress urged the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission in a letter this week to conduct a more in-depth review of online retailer Amazon.com Inc’s plan to buy grocer Whole Foods Market Inc.
The lawmakers asked that the review include consideration of what effect the $13.7 billion deal could have on access to healthy foods in so-called food deserts where residents may have limited access to fresh groceries.
“While we do not oppose the merger at this time, we are concerned about what this merger could mean for African-American communities across the country already suffering from a lack of affordable healthy food choices from grocers,” the letter said on Thursday.
The letter was signed by U.S. Representative Marcia Fudge and 11 other Democrats, including Senator Cory Booker.
Amazon and Whole Foods hope to expand access to fresh food, said Brian Huseman, Amazon’s vice president of policy, in a letter to Fudge, also on Thursday.
“We agree with you that access to food is an important issue for the country, and we share your goal of improving that access,” Huseman said in the letter.
Amazon has lobbied to be able to accept food stamps online and is participating in a pilot program.