April 28, 2025 • 32 mins
Greg Ferrara, President and CEO of the National Grocers Association, brings his unique perspective as both a former independent grocer and long-time industry advocate to discuss the rapidly changing political landscape affecting food retailers.
Drawing from nearly two decades of experience at NGA and his background running his family's New Orleans supermarket, Ferrara offers a candid assessment of the volatile tariff situation that's "changing not by the day, but sometimes by the hour." He explains why even grocers who source little directly from China should be concerned about equipment costs, supply chain disruptions, and potential economic impacts on agricultural communities that export to affected countries.
The conversation explores surprising shifts in antitrust enforcement, with both political parties now showing interest in addressing market consolidation. Ferrara connects these issues directly to food deserts, noting how the loss of independent grocers devastates communities: "If we're going to rebuild middle America, rebuild these communities, rebuild our middle class, make America healthy again, we have to have grocery stores, full-service grocery stores."
Perhaps most concerning for grocers are coming changes to SNAP regulations, which Ferrara describes as "the greatest challenge we've had in 20-plus years." With states submitting waivers to restrict purchases and potential budget cuts looming, the industry faces significant uncertainty. The NGA is working to ensure any changes minimize disruption at checkout and recognize SNAP's role in supporting both economically disadvantaged communities and grocery jobs.
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Host: Kristin Popp
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Checkout GR a bonus episode of the Women
Grocers of America podcast.
Grocery From Her Seat.
Your host, kristen Popp, speakswith political influencers to
understand new legislation,policy debates and emerging
trends.
Together, kristen and herguests explore how we can
collectively be informed, takepart in the conversation and
shape policies impacting ourindustry.
(00:22):
Now enjoy your bonus episode ofGrocery From Her Seat.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
I am your host, Kristen Popp, and today I have
the opportunity to chat withGreg Farrar, President and CEO
of the National GrocersAssociation, on our Government
Relations.
Bonus episode Welcome toGrocery From your Seat, Greg.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Hey, it's so great to be with you, Kristen.
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Yeah, thanks for sharing your time with us today.
So most of us are prettyfamiliar with you and your role
within the NGA, but can you givea brief introduction of
yourself, your background andthen kind of your role as it
relates to the politicallandscape that affects our
grocery industry?
Speaker 3 (00:58):
Yeah, you bet.
So I've actually been with NGAcoming up 19 years.
It's kind of hard to believebut prior to coming to
Washington, my family owned andoperated supermarkets in New
Orleans for almost 100 years andI was blessed to grow up in the
business and eventually wasrunning our family store, which
we lost during Hurricane Katrinaat the end of 2005.
And that's when I made the moveup here to follow a girl that I
(01:22):
was engaged to and we'llcelebrate our 19-year
anniversary here this summer.
So it's been a great journey atNGA.
You know I spent most of my timeat NGA before I was selected
for this CEO role doing ourgovernment affairs efforts and
so whether it was initially, youknow, kind of state and local
issues, and then eventuallymoved into the federal space and
(01:44):
eventually led our lobbyingteam and we really kind of built
out the group that we havetoday and our political
operation and everything else.
And you know I love that.
I love doing that, I loveengaging with Congress and the
administration and it's justbeen a wonderful ride to be here
at NGA and part of such a greatorganization that represents
(02:05):
the heart of America in terms ofbusinesses.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
I love that.
Your background is with.
You know, running anindependent operator and having
that knowledge and awareness.
I'm sure it helps you in yourrole today and you know you and
your team do such great work inWashington and obviously, with
everything going on right now,you guys have made a lot of
movement for the independent andmuch appreciated and does not
go unnoticed by any means.
So let's go ahead and jumpright in, greg.
(02:29):
There's a lot going on inWashington right now, obviously,
I think top of mind, I thinkthere's actually a lot of things
top of mind, but I think thebig one right now in the news
and I don't know where we gowith this conversation because I
don't know if we know what'sgoing to happen but terrorists,
right.
What do we need to know?
What are you guys seeing inWashington?
What do we need to know and howwill it impact our stores and
(02:52):
our consumers?
Speaker 3 (02:54):
So it is changing, not by the day, but sometimes by
the hour.
We have all, I think, becomeaccustomed to.
The president likes to dopublic events in the Oval Office
around 5, 5.30 in the eveningand that typically are
newsworthy events where heannounces something that's going
to happen.
But look, it's a moving target.
(03:14):
I think everyone in the worldwas shocked on quote unquote
Liberation Day when, you know,the blanket worldwide tariffs
were put into place and we sawwhat happened in the markets and
really how that's reacted.
We've seen the 90-day pausewhich we are in the middle of
right now, and so while thereare some tariffs that are still
out there for example, you know,kind of across the board, 10%
(03:37):
in a lot of areas andparticularly around products
that come out of Canada andMexico that are covered under
the USMCA, the old NAFTAagreement, but that's fairly
minimal given what it could be.
I think the unknown for a lot offolks is really what's going to
happen with China and, we think, by the grocery industry.
Maybe the initial reaction iswell, it's China, we're not
(03:58):
getting our tomatoes from Chinaor a lot of food products really
from China.
But if you look at the equipmentside and tech and there's a lot
that does come out of China, orcomponents of that, are
impacted by what's happeningthere.
And then, from just a localeconomy perspective, you know we
export a decent amount ofagriculture products to China,
(04:20):
and so those communities thatare dependent upon that, you
know, could feel an impact,although the department of
agriculture has said thatthey're going to, you know, work
to protect farmers.
So what we're doing right nowis, uh, we are staying very
close to the administration andvery close to Congress.
Uh, we are staying flexible.
Uh, which is something thatindependent grocers are good at
doing anyhow, but I think that'sincredibly important is that,
(04:42):
like, we're not going out thereburning bridges and blowing
things up.
We're going to stay flexible,going to stay close and we're
going to continue to communicatewith the administration,
because they need to know whatwe're hearing and what we're
feeling from our members and howwhat the president is putting
into effect is having an impacton local economies.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Yeah, I think you make great points in there.
It's not necessarily changingby the day or the week, but
sometimes the hour, and us onthe retailer side and in the
industry are just trying to stayabreast of where the target's
moving at any given point intime.
Is there anything that you guysare recommending that you
recommend we're doing right now?
Speaker 3 (05:20):
Juan Grocers, you're the closest touch to the
consumer and so you need to bereally communicating to your
customers in a way that theyunderstand what's going on, and
we've helped do that.
We've created science thatretailers can use or modify on
their own, whether it's underNGA's brand Sometimes that's
helpful for people it's a thirdparty or they can put it under
their own retailer brand.
(05:40):
But talk about why a price iselevated, why you might see
shortages at the store.
Same thing for tariffs.
We've created signage thatfolks can use when they feel
like they need to use it if theyneed to use it at all but be
able to just communicate withyour customers.
We do everything we can.
We source a lot locally, butwe're a global economy and there
(06:03):
are products whether it's foodproducts or equipment and that
could have an impact on prices.
I do think it's important notto get too far ahead.
Let's see how things play out.
But I think you look at steeland aluminum.
That's a big key focus area forthe president.
You know there areprotectionist tariffs that have
been put into place there.
So what does that do to theprice of refrigeration?
What does that do to the priceof store shelving and other
(06:26):
displays.
Those are things we need to beconscious of and what we're
really trying to do here,kristen, is listen.
We put a pulse survey out abouttwo weeks ago just to our
associate members with a fewquestions.
That was hey, what are youfeeling, what's going on, how
are you going to react to this?
And it was really great.
We heard from you know a lot ofdifferent associate members.
(06:46):
We heard from some vendors ofproducts that, honestly, we
weren't thinking about not foodproducts but equipment, saying,
hey, these are made in China andyou know, if 145% tariff or
whatever the number is, I can'teven touch them.
And so how are we helping thatvendor communicate back to you
(07:10):
know the administration andmaking sure they're aware of
these type of things and so thatwe're not, you know, unfairly
hurting consumers?
Because politically, you know,I think a lot of folks would
agree that President Trump won alot on the price of food, right
, because people groceries wereso high.
I think a lot of people wouldsay let's give someone else a
chance here.
They're very sensitive to that.
So anything that's going todrive the price of food up
something they're listening to,I think, very intently.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
Let's talk about some of the other.
Obviously, tariffs are top ofmind, with every day in the news
we're learning what may or maynot be happening.
But there's other top itemsthat are in in Washington right
now that we need to be payingattention to and that your team
is doing some great work on.
So let's let's dive intoantitrust and where that's at
right now and what you're seeingin Washington at right now and
(07:59):
what you're seeing in Washington.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
It's been really interesting and we knew they
were wrong.
But you know, wall Street, Ithink, was baking in that the
president had won and it wasgoing to be open season on the
M&A activity and antitrust underLena Kahn and President Biden
was going to be rolled back tothe good old days, and we knew
that wasn't going to be the case.
Because if you've watched theevolution of the Republican
Party as it's moved from, look,small government, you know low
(08:21):
taxes, really more big WallStreet, pro big business, to
where it is becoming today,which is, you know, more of
middle class, working class,blue collar Americans, more of a
populist movement, republicansmore of a populist movement.
Watch how JD Vance talks, watchhow Trump talks.
Now they've created thisRepublican Party and that
(08:46):
Republican Party ispro-enforcement of antitrust
laws, believe it or not.
They question big, largemurders and activity.
They are questioning potentialpower buyers who are using their
might to influence markets andto destroy local communities.
And so you know, look, today,this issue has really ebbed and
flowed over the years andsometimes it's really big,
popular in the news and thenother times it might seem a
(09:07):
little quieter, but there'sstill a lot of activity
happening.
The Federal Trade Commissionright now, you know, has two
open antitrust legal actionsgoing on right now in the courts
under Robinson-Patman Actspecifically.
That hadn't happened ingenerations, and so I think that
is still a very active liveissue, despite what people you
may hear in the media or nothear in the media, and it's a
(09:30):
perfect opportunity for MainStreet businesses, independent
grocers, to be talking to thepublic policymakers about how do
we rebuild our communities that, quite frankly, have been
destroyed over the past fewdecades because of lax antitrust
enforcement, because we'veallowed the community grocery
store and the pharmacy and thehardware store and all these
other pillars of communities tobe eviscerated because of
(09:53):
antitrust laws weren't enforcedand what it has done to those
communities.
There's opportunity to rebuildthem, but to rebuild them we
have to enforce the laws thatare on the books.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
And is there anything skipping ahead a little bit
here, but helping lead thecharge in eliminating food
deaths?
It's really essentially that'swhat you're talking about, right
?
Absolutely.
Because, when some of thoselaws and regulations aren't
enforced, it does wipe out thatsmaller operator and those that
are closely tied to thecommunity.
Is there anything else or anyother policies that we should be
(10:22):
considering to help eliminatethose food deserts and help
support those communities?
Speaker 3 (10:27):
Yeah, there's a lot of sensitivity around that,
because it's not just you createa food desert, but you lose all
the other small businessopportunities around that.
And you know, and yourlisteners know so well, if you
don't have a grocery store, itis really hard for families to
live in a community and knowthat they've got to drive, you
know, 10, 20, 30 plus miles,maybe in a rural area, to get
fresh foods, and that issomething that is an economic
(10:49):
issue.
The other piece of this is thiswhole Maha movement Make
America Healthy Again movement,which is very real, which is
it's not just a grassrootsmovement, it's actually a
political movement, apolitically funded movement here
in Washington.
I don't know how many peopleare aware of that, but you can't
make America healthy again iftheir only option is a dollar
store selling a bunch of junkright and minimal fresh foods or
(11:11):
no fresh foods at all.
If we're going to rebuild middleAmerica, we're going to rebuild
these communities, we're goingto rebuild our middle class,
we're going to make Americahealthy again, we have to have
grocery stores, full-servicegrocery stores.
That are part of thatconversation, and that is
exactly what we are telling theadministration, what we are
telling Congress particularly.
I know we're going to talkabout probably snap in a minute
(11:33):
here, but that ties inabsolutely directly with that
issue.
We can't make people healthieragain if they don't have access
to fresh foods and to food ingeneral.
We've got to address the fooddesert issue.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
You're reading my mind here.
I mean, I think, with thecurrent administration's focus
on America's chronic healthdisease and the epidemic that
we're seeing from it andutilizing the SNAP program as a
tool to help navigate some ofthose diseases and the epidemic
that they're seeing, what'scurrently happening with SNAP
and are there any changes thatthe grocers that us, as grocers
(12:07):
should be aware of in thecurrent landscape?
Speaker 3 (12:10):
Yeah, you know, folks who are at the NGA show listen
to the keynote session.
I, you know, intentionally toldour members that, look, we've
got some challenges coming upthis year with SNAP and I think
the greatest challenge thatwe've had in 20-plus years of
doing this.
We've always been incrediblysuccessful at killing ideas that
would, you know, add new costand burdens to grocers, restrict
SNAP or even, you know, cut theprogram.
(12:34):
We are in a differentenvironment today and there is a
huge movement driven a lot bythe Maha movement, which
Secretary, you know, rfk Jr, isa huge disciple of, as is US
Secretary Brooke Rollins, a hugedisciple of this movement, and
they are influencing kind ofwhat is going on with the SNAP
(12:56):
program.
We have the administrationencouraging states to submit
waivers and we've got probablyclose to two dozen that either
have done it or are going to bepotentially doing that Waivers
restrict what people canpurchase on SNAP.
Look, nga has always beenagnostic on the food product.
We've never gotten involved insaying, oh, everyone should be
allowed to have, you know, xcookie or this drink.
(13:17):
We don't feel that's our place,what our board has said.
But our place is we're the lasttouch to the customer and so we
want to make sure that we'reable to serve that customer,
that we're not in a positionwhere we are going to be
penalized or create chaos andconfusion at retail because of
what's allowed in the programand what's not, and people think
(13:38):
, oh, it's very simple.
Just, you can't have a softdrink or you can't have candy.
Well, you have to define that.
You have to legally say this iswhat this item is, so that we
can implement that and enforcethat.
These are federal programs,these are federal money and we
have to be very clear about whatis in and what is out.
(13:59):
So we're navigating that rightnow.
We are going to have pilots.
The first is likely to beArkansas that will be approved
and in place sometime in 26, andwe'll have other states that
are going to be coming forward.
And then we've got otherchallenges, kristen, around SNAP
and around you know, potentialcuts to the program.
We're going through the budgetkind of reconciliation process
(14:20):
and looking for pay force toextend the 2017 tax cuts.
The agriculture committees havereally been tasked with a
pretty large number to come upwith savings and I think a lot
of folks believe that you knowthe area where there could be
those savings is in the SNAPprogram.
So our board actually, you know, for the first time approved
our policy recommendation, whichwas to lobby on that issue,
because it's not just we wantSNAP to stay.
(14:43):
You know a well-funded program.
Snap equals jobs and they equallocal jobs and we've got data.
We're actually updating thisdata but over 200,000 direct
jobs in grocery are tied to theSNAP program.
Like it or not, we haveeconomically disadvantaged
communities in this country.
We would love for everyAmerican to be off of SNAP and
have good paying jobs, butthat's not the case that we have
(15:04):
right now.
So if we're going to keepgrocery stores in these
communities or we're going tohave an economy that has a
chance of coming back in thesecommunities, snap is a really,
really important part of beingable to do that.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
There's so much good information that you share with
us and that just thatconversation around SNAP.
And one thing that withoutclear definition from a
retailer's standpoint and thendown to the end user, the
consumer right that without thatit does create significant
challenges through the checkoutprocess and then from operating
a front end, you put individualsthat are younger or not as
(15:38):
aware and creating verysometimes tense situations at
the register.
So something I support is justclear definition and don't make
us pick and choose what somebodycan and can't have.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
And don't expose you guys to liability.
What I will say is we NGA has aseat at the table.
We have been over to the USDAand the White House more times
than I can count.
We are meeting at the highestlevels of the Department of
Agriculture, which oversees theprogram.
We are being listened to.
Our recommendations areactually being implemented in a
(16:18):
lot of areas and we're reallyproud that that is happening.
But we know waivers are going tocome.
That is not a shift that we oranyone really can stop, and so
our goal is how do we shapethose in a way that they have
minimal disruption on grocers,that they're as narrow as they
can be and that we also minimizeKristen the potential economic
(16:42):
fallout from it?
So think about if you know,arkansas is going to likely have
a waiver but Tennessee doesn't.
Well, those stores that operatein the eastern part of the
state, that are close to theborder of Tennessee, could see
economic leakage, because peoplewho are on SNAP may say hey,
you know it's too.
I can buy the products I wantin the state next door.
It's a 20-minute drive.
(17:03):
I'm going to do that and I getnews for you.
They're going to buy everythingthere and just bring it back
home.
So those are things that wewant to make sure policymakers
are understanding, that they'regoing to study, that they're
aware of and they try tominimize the impact to the
independent grocery industry.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
Yeah, and you mentioned the focus on the Maha.
We're seeing stuff come outevery day, right the food dyes,
everything that we're seeing andjust understanding what that
means and how we'll navigatethat going forward.
So definitely something to keepan eye on.
You mentioned dollar-typestores a little bit earlier in
our conversation Independence,need to be able to compete with
(17:40):
those format stores and nationalchange.
Is there anything happeningpolicy-wise that we haven't
touched on already that supportsthat need?
Speaker 3 (17:48):
Yeah.
So one of the things let's let'sstay on the SNAP, you know,
piece of it is we are excitedthat the I think the
administration agrees with ourposition is that if you're going
to participate in the SNAPprogram, you need to be a food
store and you need the majorityof business needs to be food,
and so we believe they are goingto revisit the current minimum
stocking requirements that existtoday and look at ways to
(18:11):
enhance those so that theyunderstand the stores that are
in program are actually, youknow, food stores, and I think
that will have an impact on someof the dollar stores that are
out there.
They're going to have to makedecisions on, you know, whether
they're going to be in or out.
The other piece of it is andthis continues to be the
antitrust piece of that thechannels of trade is a huge
(18:31):
component of it, and so we arepushing aggressively there.
You know we launched a campaignat the beginning of this year
called Fair Markets, freshChoices, and you can go to our
website and see that we havesome videos.
But it talks, it's not justantitrust.
It goes into the SNAP programand really kind of holistically
looks at our advocacy effortsand ensuring that policymakers
(18:56):
understand the importance ofindependent grocers, the
importance of the role they playin the communities and how we
need to make sure we're going tohave strong American
communities, particularly inmiddle America, middle-class
communities.
We need to have strong,independent grocers.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
So, as we look at the changing consumer preferences,
how is that influencing policyand what should us, as grocers,
be doing to prepare for some ofthese shifts that you're seeing?
Speaker 3 (19:21):
You know what's great about independent grocers?
They have always been so farahead of whatever the latest
kind of policy movement is andMaha is a policy and a political
movement.
I look at that.
I mean really it's theconsumers have been saying, I
think, for some time we wantmore natural, we want cleaner
products, we want cleaner labels.
And independent grocers inparticular have been with those
(19:44):
trends, sometimes ahead of thosetrends in their communities,
for a while now.
So I don't think it's really tome a big shock that we're
seeing some of this take place.
Grocers, at the end of the day,serve their customers and their
communities and they are goingto go to where the customer
wants them to go, and that'sreally important for
policymakers to understand and,quite frankly, for the CPG
(20:07):
industry to understand as well.
I think that's the area whereindependents are going to
continue to win.
We win in fresh, we win inlocal and we win in specialty
and natural, and those are theopportunities that we want to
continue leaning in on.
Speaker 2 (20:18):
I think the ability to pivot to the changes and do
that in a much faster pace thanwhat we see some of our
competition able to pivot on.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
Bingo.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
You mentioned several wins that the NGA team has had
and I know just before jumpingon this call we talked about you
and Stephanie being able to beat the USDA offices on a regular
basis.
Good, bad or indifferent, itstill is impactful, it makes a
difference to the industry.
But are there any other majorwins that you guys have had or
seen that we haven't touched on?
Speaker 3 (20:50):
Yeah, you know.
Look, we fought incredibly hardand we're excited to see a
delay in the FDA traceabilityimplementation, enforcement
implementation.
There's still an enormousamount of work that needs to be
done there, but giving somebreathing room to the industry
to try to figure out how to getthis right not spend money
(21:11):
unnecessarily on things that maynot work I think was a great
win, and so we're excited andappreciative of the Trump
administration for listening tous and the industry in doing
that.
Kill a regulation that woulddramatically increase the cost
of refrigerants for grocers,particularly because the supply
(21:32):
is not there to meet thatregulatory demand.
And we have a CongressionalReview Act that NGA is leading
here in Washington with otherpartners to pull back the
management rule of that EPArefrigerant.
And the reason NGA is leadingthis is we have one of our
members in a rural part ofFlorida talked to his member of
Congress about this.
His member of Congress saidI'll introduce the Congress
(21:53):
Review Act bill for you becauseI know the impact this is going
to have on our local foodeconomy, and so they're doing
that.
We've also mentioned theantitrust work.
Seeing that the Robin SpatmanAct enforced for the first time
in generations is really good,and I think companies are paying
attention and are now educatingtheir sales teams and others
(22:15):
about how to make sure they'recomplying with the law and we're
glad to see that kind of movingforward.
And then we're very engaged onthe tax piece a lot of noise
around the tax extenders andwhatnot, but at the end of the
day a lot of our members arepass-through companies and
whatnot, but at the end of theday a lot of our members are
password companies.
We've got a lot of family-ownedbusinesses and we want to make
(22:36):
sure that those provisions thatwill expire at the end of this
year are going to be extended ormade permanent to make sure our
businesses can continue tofairly compete and have the
ability to serve their communityfor many years to come.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
Well, again, your team does such a great job I
mean under your leadership ofknowing where you need to be and
then getting that seat so thatyour voices can be heard, and
again, I can't underappreciatethe work that you guys are doing
up there and in Washington forus.
So we haven't touched on thetraceability rule and I know
we're all excited that this gotpushed back, but what does that
(23:09):
look like?
What should we be still doingand aware of and considering,
even though there is a delay inthe execution of it?
Speaker 3 (23:19):
Yeah, it's not going to go away, but we believe the
administration will be more opento ideas that can make it more
workable and more flexible.
Right, we want to make surethat industry is not spending an
enormous amount of money forvery little return or consumer
(23:39):
protections, and so those arethe conversations that we're
having these are not just NGAconversations, these are really
food supply chain conversationsand with other partners that are
part of that as well and makingsure we're bringing those
recommendations to the agencyand the new agency leadership
FDA reports up to Health andHuman Services.
That's Secretary Kennedy.
We've got a new FDAcommissioner that was just sworn
(24:01):
in last week or so and we'vegot a lot of policy people
changes.
I mean everyone's hearing aboutthe government people that are
retired been taking the buyouts,retired early or being let go.
Those are real, and there are alot of people that you know are
no longer at the agencies orleaving the agencies.
Some of them had some prettydeep wells of experience, and so
(24:22):
we probably have a lot ofeducation to do in kind of
rebuilding that.
But I think we have a lot ofopportunity there to make some
improvements.
But my advice to our membercompanies is to continue to be
working on this because it's notgoing to completely go away.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Is there any legislative actions or
initiatives that you recommendgrocers watch closely?
I mean, we've touched on somuch throughout this discussion,
but is there anything that weshould be looking at closely
that we haven't hit on?
Speaker 3 (24:51):
Yeah, look, I think it needs to continue to be
focused on tax.
When it moves, it may movequickly.
Tiny margins in the House ofRepresentatives means a lot of
the sausage baking I think isgoing to be done behind closed
doors, and so that's somethingthat you know.
We want to make sure that we'reall attuned to, and our members
should be talking to theirlocal members of Congress.
That's why we have such arobust store tour program.
(25:12):
Reach out to us.
We'd love to set a store tourup with your member of Congress
and you and you just talk abouthey, we're a family-owned
business, we're third generation, fifth generation, so the
estate tax is important to us.
We're grocery stores.
Most of our assets arenon-liquid, they're tied up in
(25:35):
inventory and fixtures andequipment and real estate.
Right, they need to understandthat.
I was listening to a member ofCongress on one of the business
talk shows on the way in to workone morning this week and he
said look, I've got a lot offamily-owned businesses in my
district, and so he was in tuneto that and saying we're not
going to allow them to have evenmore disparity between the
corporate rate and thepass-through rate.
So that's an important thing.
The Farm Bill, if it everhappens, is going to be key, and
then you continue to work onantitrust.
I think it's really importantfor members of Congress,
(25:56):
particularly the judiciarycommittees, to continue feeling
the pressure, to continuehearing from their small
business constituents that weexpect Congress and the elected
representatives to hold thefederal agencies accountable.
Laws that Congress has passedand the president signed into
law need to be enforced, and thecurrent chair of the FTC,
andrew Ferguson, believes thatand has said that publicly.
(26:17):
We want to make sure that theCongress holds those agencies'
feet to the fire and that theycontinue to do their jobs.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
I want to highlight that when you talk about doing
SOAR tours, if you have theopportunity or the ability to do
that, make time.
We've participated in it and Ido think it really is a game
changer in showing what reallyhappens.
How does this really impact?
You know whether it's X, y or Zthat we're talking about, but
how does it actually impact theday-to-day, the consumer, our
(26:46):
operations and being able toshow that it really has been
impactful?
Speaker 3 (26:51):
It is huge and, by the way, that tour might last 30
minutes, an hour and a half.
Whatever can pay years ofpositive dividends in terms they
remember those tours.
Speaker 2 (27:01):
Looking ahead with this being a Women Grocers of
America podcast, I would beamiss if I did not ask you what
advice you would give to womenin the grocery industry that
want to become more involved inpolitical advocacy or
influencing on policy.
Speaker 3 (27:15):
Over 150 women are part of the US Congress today.
Our Department of Ag Secretaryis a woman and a mom of four
kids, Our Small BusinessAdminist administrator is a
woman and we have other cabinetsecretaries, like Linda McMahon
in education, that are women.
We need our women leaders inthis industry to be active.
(27:38):
We need you to be involved inpublic policy and our store
tours.
Many are involved.
Today Our government relationscommittee has a really great
bench of women leaders that areinvolved and are great advocates
, as is our board of directors.
But we need you know when wehave our fly-in coming up here
in about a month away, a littleless than a month away, here in
Washington, May 20th through the21st.
(27:59):
You know we have a number ofwomen that will be part of that.
But the more women that come toWashington and are a voice, you
can have some kind of greaterinfluence because you'll stand
out and you can connect betterto those members of Congress or
administrative officials who arefemale leaders.
And I think if I look at some ofthe senior leaders at USDA
(28:20):
under the secretary, they'refemale leaders to come lend your
voice and your perspective, notjust as an industry leader but,
as you know, potentially a momor, you know, part of your
family, and to share thatperspective.
That's how we make a differenceand how we advance the policy
forward.
I would add to that, Kristen,because you've shared this with
(28:43):
me.
You know, first time you cameto Washington a number of years
ago.
It can be intimidating.
It can be intimidating to go upto Congress, and that's not
just for a woman, that's for aman as well.
But I think once you do it andyou see it and you experience it
, you realize this is important,this is really cool and I can
(29:03):
make a difference.
And so I encourage folks to bepart of the fly-ins, be part of
our executive conference, cometo Washington, lend your voice
and help independent grocerscontinue to make a difference in
Washington and then across thecountry.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
What you said, yes, was it intimidating?
Absolutely, and I don't to yourpoint.
I don't think.
I think that's gender neutral,right, it's intimidating it
absolutely is gender neutral.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
Trust me, yes.
Speaker 2 (29:27):
And your team does such a great job of educating us
and letting us know what weneed to be aware of when we go
into those meetings.
You don't have to be an experton anything.
What you have to be able to dois tell your story and, again,
the impact that that leaves onour representatives pays
(29:47):
dividends for a very long time.
So I encourage everybody toexperience the fly and I'll be
in DC here in May, and not toofar from where we're at today
and I'm looking forward toanother great round of
conversations and being able tojust tell that story.
Speaker 3 (30:03):
I will add to that it is telling a story.
We don't want you to be apolicy expert.
I don't want you to be alobbyist.
I don't want you to be a legalexpert.
I just want you to be a grocer.
I want you to be a foodindustry executive.
I want you to come and tellyour story.
That's it, because you canexplain it better than anybody
how credit card fees areimpacting your business or how
lack of antitrust enforcement iscreating unlevel playing fields
(30:26):
and hurting the communitiesthat you're trying to serve.
We'll take care of the rest.
Speaker 2 (30:33):
Just come tell your story and you can make a
difference Absolutely.
And I think the other thingthat I learned is asking
questions and I learned a lotfrom just observing.
I was in a meeting with arepresentative that we did ask
some questions and point somethings out.
And next thing, I know we havethe law, the written law, on the
table and we're looking throughthe book and having just really
(30:53):
impactful conversations thatwere eye opening to not only us
but the representative as well.
Not only an awesome experienceto be on the Hill in Washington,
but it definitely does havesignificant value to the
industry as a whole.
Speaker 3 (31:07):
And it's cool.
I'm sorry.
Washington is a beautiful city,it's your capital.
You know, I've never met anyonewho's come here who wasn't
wowed.
It's just really neat to bepart of.
Speaker 2 (31:19):
Greg, as we wrap up, I just want to say thank you so
much for your time today.
I know you guys are busy inWashington with everything going
on, so I do appreciate youtaking the time to step aside
and have this conversation.
Speaker 3 (31:29):
Well, hey, it's wonderful to be with you and
your listeners.
Thanks for the opportunityagain to come on to the podcast
and I look forward to seeingfolks in September in Atlanta
for the WGA Summit.
It's going to be fantastic.
Let's see if we can't sell thatevent out here before we get to
the summer.
Thanks, greg, I appreciate it.
Great to be with you.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
Thank you for tuning in to CheckoutGR, a bonus
podcast episode of Women Grocersof America.
We hope today's conversationinspired you to be more engaged
with the policy issues shapingour industry.
Subscribe to Grocery From HerSeat for more insights and
conversations with women leadersin the grocery world.
Stay informed, stay engaged andshare Grocery From Her Seat on
(32:11):
your favorite podcast listeningplatform.
Welcome to Checkout GR a bonus episode of the Women
Grocers of America podcast.
Grocery From Her Seat.
Your host, kristen Popp, speakswith political influencers to
understand new legislation,policy debates and emerging
trends.
Together, kristen and herguests explore how we can
collectively be informed, takepart in the conversation and
shape policies impacting ourindustry.
(00:22):
Now enjoy your bonus episode ofGrocery From Her Seat.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
I am your host, Kristen Popp, and today I have
the opportunity to chat withGreg Farrar, President and CEO
of the National GrocersAssociation, on our Government
Relations.
Bonus episode Welcome toGrocery From your Seat, Greg.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Hey, it's so great to be with you, Kristen.
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Yeah, thanks for sharing your time with us today.
So most of us are prettyfamiliar with you and your role
within the NGA, but can you givea brief introduction of
yourself, your background andthen kind of your role as it
relates to the politicallandscape that affects our
grocery industry?
Speaker 3 (00:58):
Yeah, you bet.
So I've actually been with NGAcoming up 19 years.
It's kind of hard to believebut prior to coming to
Washington, my family owned andoperated supermarkets in New
Orleans for almost 100 years andI was blessed to grow up in the
business and eventually wasrunning our family store, which
we lost during Hurricane Katrinaat the end of 2005.
And that's when I made the moveup here to follow a girl that I
(01:22):
was engaged to and we'llcelebrate our 19-year
anniversary here this summer.
So it's been a great journey atNGA.
You know I spent most of my timeat NGA before I was selected
for this CEO role doing ourgovernment affairs efforts and
so whether it was initially, youknow, kind of state and local
issues, and then eventuallymoved into the federal space and
(01:44):
eventually led our lobbyingteam and we really kind of built
out the group that we havetoday and our political
operation and everything else.
And you know I love that.
I love doing that, I loveengaging with Congress and the
administration and it's justbeen a wonderful ride to be here
at NGA and part of such a greatorganization that represents
(02:05):
the heart of America in terms ofbusinesses.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
I love that.
Your background is with.
You know, running anindependent operator and having
that knowledge and awareness.
I'm sure it helps you in yourrole today and you know you and
your team do such great work inWashington and obviously, with
everything going on right now,you guys have made a lot of
movement for the independent andmuch appreciated and does not
go unnoticed by any means.
So let's go ahead and jumpright in, greg.
(02:29):
There's a lot going on inWashington right now, obviously,
I think top of mind, I thinkthere's actually a lot of things
top of mind, but I think thebig one right now in the news
and I don't know where we gowith this conversation because I
don't know if we know what'sgoing to happen but terrorists,
right.
What do we need to know?
What are you guys seeing inWashington?
What do we need to know and howwill it impact our stores and
(02:52):
our consumers?
Speaker 3 (02:54):
So it is changing, not by the day, but sometimes by
the hour.
We have all, I think, becomeaccustomed to.
The president likes to dopublic events in the Oval Office
around 5, 5.30 in the eveningand that typically are
newsworthy events where heannounces something that's going
to happen.
But look, it's a moving target.
(03:14):
I think everyone in the worldwas shocked on quote unquote
Liberation Day when, you know,the blanket worldwide tariffs
were put into place and we sawwhat happened in the markets and
really how that's reacted.
We've seen the 90-day pausewhich we are in the middle of
right now, and so while thereare some tariffs that are still
out there for example, you know,kind of across the board, 10%
(03:37):
in a lot of areas andparticularly around products
that come out of Canada andMexico that are covered under
the USMCA, the old NAFTAagreement, but that's fairly
minimal given what it could be.
I think the unknown for a lot offolks is really what's going to
happen with China and, we think, by the grocery industry.
Maybe the initial reaction iswell, it's China, we're not
(03:58):
getting our tomatoes from Chinaor a lot of food products really
from China.
But if you look at the equipmentside and tech and there's a lot
that does come out of China, orcomponents of that, are
impacted by what's happeningthere.
And then, from just a localeconomy perspective, you know we
export a decent amount ofagriculture products to China,
(04:20):
and so those communities thatare dependent upon that, you
know, could feel an impact,although the department of
agriculture has said thatthey're going to, you know, work
to protect farmers.
So what we're doing right nowis, uh, we are staying very
close to the administration andvery close to Congress.
Uh, we are staying flexible.
Uh, which is something thatindependent grocers are good at
doing anyhow, but I think that'sincredibly important is that,
(04:42):
like, we're not going out thereburning bridges and blowing
things up.
We're going to stay flexible,going to stay close and we're
going to continue to communicatewith the administration,
because they need to know whatwe're hearing and what we're
feeling from our members and howwhat the president is putting
into effect is having an impacton local economies.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Yeah, I think you make great points in there.
It's not necessarily changingby the day or the week, but
sometimes the hour, and us onthe retailer side and in the
industry are just trying to stayabreast of where the target's
moving at any given point intime.
Is there anything that you guysare recommending that you
recommend we're doing right now?
Speaker 3 (05:20):
Juan Grocers, you're the closest touch to the
consumer and so you need to bereally communicating to your
customers in a way that theyunderstand what's going on, and
we've helped do that.
We've created science thatretailers can use or modify on
their own, whether it's underNGA's brand Sometimes that's
helpful for people it's a thirdparty or they can put it under
their own retailer brand.
(05:40):
But talk about why a price iselevated, why you might see
shortages at the store.
Same thing for tariffs.
We've created signage thatfolks can use when they feel
like they need to use it if theyneed to use it at all but be
able to just communicate withyour customers.
We do everything we can.
We source a lot locally, butwe're a global economy and there
(06:03):
are products whether it's foodproducts or equipment and that
could have an impact on prices.
I do think it's important notto get too far ahead.
Let's see how things play out.
But I think you look at steeland aluminum.
That's a big key focus area forthe president.
You know there areprotectionist tariffs that have
been put into place there.
So what does that do to theprice of refrigeration?
What does that do to the priceof store shelving and other
(06:26):
displays.
Those are things we need to beconscious of and what we're
really trying to do here,kristen, is listen.
We put a pulse survey out abouttwo weeks ago just to our
associate members with a fewquestions.
That was hey, what are youfeeling, what's going on, how
are you going to react to this?
And it was really great.
We heard from you know a lot ofdifferent associate members.
(06:46):
We heard from some vendors ofproducts that, honestly, we
weren't thinking about not foodproducts but equipment, saying,
hey, these are made in China andyou know, if 145% tariff or
whatever the number is, I can'teven touch them.
And so how are we helping thatvendor communicate back to you
(07:10):
know the administration andmaking sure they're aware of
these type of things and so thatwe're not, you know, unfairly
hurting consumers?
Because politically, you know,I think a lot of folks would
agree that President Trump won alot on the price of food, right
, because people groceries wereso high.
I think a lot of people wouldsay let's give someone else a
chance here.
They're very sensitive to that.
So anything that's going todrive the price of food up
something they're listening to,I think, very intently.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
Let's talk about some of the other.
Obviously, tariffs are top ofmind, with every day in the news
we're learning what may or maynot be happening.
But there's other top itemsthat are in in Washington right
now that we need to be payingattention to and that your team
is doing some great work on.
So let's let's dive intoantitrust and where that's at
right now and what you're seeingin Washington at right now and
(07:59):
what you're seeing in Washington.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
It's been really interesting and we knew they
were wrong.
But you know, wall Street, Ithink, was baking in that the
president had won and it wasgoing to be open season on the
M&A activity and antitrust underLena Kahn and President Biden
was going to be rolled back tothe good old days, and we knew
that wasn't going to be the case.
Because if you've watched theevolution of the Republican
Party as it's moved from, look,small government, you know low
(08:21):
taxes, really more big WallStreet, pro big business, to
where it is becoming today,which is, you know, more of
middle class, working class,blue collar Americans, more of a
populist movement, republicansmore of a populist movement.
Watch how JD Vance talks, watchhow Trump talks.
Now they've created thisRepublican Party and that
(08:46):
Republican Party ispro-enforcement of antitrust
laws, believe it or not.
They question big, largemurders and activity.
They are questioning potentialpower buyers who are using their
might to influence markets andto destroy local communities.
And so you know, look, today,this issue has really ebbed and
flowed over the years andsometimes it's really big,
popular in the news and thenother times it might seem a
(09:07):
little quieter, but there'sstill a lot of activity
happening.
The Federal Trade Commissionright now, you know, has two
open antitrust legal actionsgoing on right now in the courts
under Robinson-Patman Actspecifically.
That hadn't happened ingenerations, and so I think that
is still a very active liveissue, despite what people you
may hear in the media or nothear in the media, and it's a
(09:30):
perfect opportunity for MainStreet businesses, independent
grocers, to be talking to thepublic policymakers about how do
we rebuild our communities that, quite frankly, have been
destroyed over the past fewdecades because of lax antitrust
enforcement, because we'veallowed the community grocery
store and the pharmacy and thehardware store and all these
other pillars of communities tobe eviscerated because of
(09:53):
antitrust laws weren't enforcedand what it has done to those
communities.
There's opportunity to rebuildthem, but to rebuild them we
have to enforce the laws thatare on the books.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
And is there anything skipping ahead a little bit
here, but helping lead thecharge in eliminating food
deaths?
It's really essentially that'swhat you're talking about, right
?
Absolutely.
Because, when some of thoselaws and regulations aren't
enforced, it does wipe out thatsmaller operator and those that
are closely tied to thecommunity.
Is there anything else or anyother policies that we should be
(10:22):
considering to help eliminatethose food deserts and help
support those communities?
Speaker 3 (10:27):
Yeah, there's a lot of sensitivity around that,
because it's not just you createa food desert, but you lose all
the other small businessopportunities around that.
And you know, and yourlisteners know so well, if you
don't have a grocery store, itis really hard for families to
live in a community and knowthat they've got to drive, you
know, 10, 20, 30 plus miles,maybe in a rural area, to get
fresh foods, and that issomething that is an economic
(10:49):
issue.
The other piece of this is thiswhole Maha movement Make
America Healthy Again movement,which is very real, which is
it's not just a grassrootsmovement, it's actually a
political movement, apolitically funded movement here
in Washington.
I don't know how many peopleare aware of that, but you can't
make America healthy again iftheir only option is a dollar
store selling a bunch of junkright and minimal fresh foods or
(11:11):
no fresh foods at all.
If we're going to rebuild middleAmerica, we're going to rebuild
these communities, we're goingto rebuild our middle class,
we're going to make Americahealthy again, we have to have
grocery stores, full-servicegrocery stores.
That are part of thatconversation, and that is
exactly what we are telling theadministration, what we are
telling Congress particularly.
I know we're going to talkabout probably snap in a minute
(11:33):
here, but that ties inabsolutely directly with that
issue.
We can't make people healthieragain if they don't have access
to fresh foods and to food ingeneral.
We've got to address the fooddesert issue.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
You're reading my mind here.
I mean, I think, with thecurrent administration's focus
on America's chronic healthdisease and the epidemic that
we're seeing from it andutilizing the SNAP program as a
tool to help navigate some ofthose diseases and the epidemic
that they're seeing, what'scurrently happening with SNAP
and are there any changes thatthe grocers that us, as grocers
(12:07):
should be aware of in thecurrent landscape?
Speaker 3 (12:10):
Yeah, you know, folks who are at the NGA show listen
to the keynote session.
I, you know, intentionally toldour members that, look, we've
got some challenges coming upthis year with SNAP and I think
the greatest challenge thatwe've had in 20-plus years of
doing this.
We've always been incrediblysuccessful at killing ideas that
would, you know, add new costand burdens to grocers, restrict
SNAP or even, you know, cut theprogram.
(12:34):
We are in a differentenvironment today and there is a
huge movement driven a lot bythe Maha movement, which
Secretary, you know, rfk Jr, isa huge disciple of, as is US
Secretary Brooke Rollins, a hugedisciple of this movement, and
they are influencing kind ofwhat is going on with the SNAP
(12:56):
program.
We have the administrationencouraging states to submit
waivers and we've got probablyclose to two dozen that either
have done it or are going to bepotentially doing that Waivers
restrict what people canpurchase on SNAP.
Look, nga has always beenagnostic on the food product.
We've never gotten involved insaying, oh, everyone should be
allowed to have, you know, xcookie or this drink.
(13:17):
We don't feel that's our place,what our board has said.
But our place is we're the lasttouch to the customer and so we
want to make sure that we'reable to serve that customer,
that we're not in a positionwhere we are going to be
penalized or create chaos andconfusion at retail because of
what's allowed in the programand what's not, and people think
(13:38):
, oh, it's very simple.
Just, you can't have a softdrink or you can't have candy.
Well, you have to define that.
You have to legally say this iswhat this item is, so that we
can implement that and enforcethat.
These are federal programs,these are federal money and we
have to be very clear about whatis in and what is out.
(13:59):
So we're navigating that rightnow.
We are going to have pilots.
The first is likely to beArkansas that will be approved
and in place sometime in 26, andwe'll have other states that
are going to be coming forward.
And then we've got otherchallenges, kristen, around SNAP
and around you know, potentialcuts to the program.
We're going through the budgetkind of reconciliation process
(14:20):
and looking for pay force toextend the 2017 tax cuts.
The agriculture committees havereally been tasked with a
pretty large number to come upwith savings and I think a lot
of folks believe that you knowthe area where there could be
those savings is in the SNAPprogram.
So our board actually, you know, for the first time approved
our policy recommendation, whichwas to lobby on that issue,
because it's not just we wantSNAP to stay.
(14:43):
You know a well-funded program.
Snap equals jobs and they equallocal jobs and we've got data.
We're actually updating thisdata but over 200,000 direct
jobs in grocery are tied to theSNAP program.
Like it or not, we haveeconomically disadvantaged
communities in this country.
We would love for everyAmerican to be off of SNAP and
have good paying jobs, butthat's not the case that we have
(15:04):
right now.
So if we're going to keepgrocery stores in these
communities or we're going tohave an economy that has a
chance of coming back in thesecommunities, snap is a really,
really important part of beingable to do that.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
There's so much good information that you share with
us and that just thatconversation around SNAP.
And one thing that withoutclear definition from a
retailer's standpoint and thendown to the end user, the
consumer right that without thatit does create significant
challenges through the checkoutprocess and then from operating
a front end, you put individualsthat are younger or not as
(15:38):
aware and creating verysometimes tense situations at
the register.
So something I support is justclear definition and don't make
us pick and choose what somebodycan and can't have.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
And don't expose you guys to liability.
What I will say is we NGA has aseat at the table.
We have been over to the USDAand the White House more times
than I can count.
We are meeting at the highestlevels of the Department of
Agriculture, which oversees theprogram.
We are being listened to.
Our recommendations areactually being implemented in a
(16:18):
lot of areas and we're reallyproud that that is happening.
But we know waivers are going tocome.
That is not a shift that we oranyone really can stop, and so
our goal is how do we shapethose in a way that they have
minimal disruption on grocers,that they're as narrow as they
can be and that we also minimizeKristen the potential economic
(16:42):
fallout from it?
So think about if you know,arkansas is going to likely have
a waiver but Tennessee doesn't.
Well, those stores that operatein the eastern part of the
state, that are close to theborder of Tennessee, could see
economic leakage, because peoplewho are on SNAP may say hey,
you know it's too.
I can buy the products I wantin the state next door.
It's a 20-minute drive.
(17:03):
I'm going to do that and I getnews for you.
They're going to buy everythingthere and just bring it back
home.
So those are things that wewant to make sure policymakers
are understanding, that they'regoing to study, that they're
aware of and they try tominimize the impact to the
independent grocery industry.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
Yeah, and you mentioned the focus on the Maha.
We're seeing stuff come outevery day, right the food dyes,
everything that we're seeing andjust understanding what that
means and how we'll navigatethat going forward.
So definitely something to keepan eye on.
You mentioned dollar-typestores a little bit earlier in
our conversation Independence,need to be able to compete with
(17:40):
those format stores and nationalchange.
Is there anything happeningpolicy-wise that we haven't
touched on already that supportsthat need?
Speaker 3 (17:48):
Yeah.
So one of the things let's let'sstay on the SNAP, you know,
piece of it is we are excitedthat the I think the
administration agrees with ourposition is that if you're going
to participate in the SNAPprogram, you need to be a food
store and you need the majorityof business needs to be food,
and so we believe they are goingto revisit the current minimum
stocking requirements that existtoday and look at ways to
(18:11):
enhance those so that theyunderstand the stores that are
in program are actually, youknow, food stores, and I think
that will have an impact on someof the dollar stores that are
out there.
They're going to have to makedecisions on, you know, whether
they're going to be in or out.
The other piece of it is andthis continues to be the
antitrust piece of that thechannels of trade is a huge
(18:31):
component of it, and so we arepushing aggressively there.
You know we launched a campaignat the beginning of this year
called Fair Markets, freshChoices, and you can go to our
website and see that we havesome videos.
But it talks, it's not justantitrust.
It goes into the SNAP programand really kind of holistically
looks at our advocacy effortsand ensuring that policymakers
(18:56):
understand the importance ofindependent grocers, the
importance of the role they playin the communities and how we
need to make sure we're going tohave strong American
communities, particularly inmiddle America, middle-class
communities.
We need to have strong,independent grocers.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
So, as we look at the changing consumer preferences,
how is that influencing policyand what should us, as grocers,
be doing to prepare for some ofthese shifts that you're seeing?
Speaker 3 (19:21):
You know what's great about independent grocers?
They have always been so farahead of whatever the latest
kind of policy movement is andMaha is a policy and a political
movement.
I look at that.
I mean really it's theconsumers have been saying, I
think, for some time we wantmore natural, we want cleaner
products, we want cleaner labels.
And independent grocers inparticular have been with those
(19:44):
trends, sometimes ahead of thosetrends in their communities,
for a while now.
So I don't think it's really tome a big shock that we're
seeing some of this take place.
Grocers, at the end of the day,serve their customers and their
communities and they are goingto go to where the customer
wants them to go, and that'sreally important for
policymakers to understand and,quite frankly, for the CPG
(20:07):
industry to understand as well.
I think that's the area whereindependents are going to
continue to win.
We win in fresh, we win inlocal and we win in specialty
and natural, and those are theopportunities that we want to
continue leaning in on.
Speaker 2 (20:18):
I think the ability to pivot to the changes and do
that in a much faster pace thanwhat we see some of our
competition able to pivot on.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
Bingo.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
You mentioned several wins that the NGA team has had
and I know just before jumpingon this call we talked about you
and Stephanie being able to beat the USDA offices on a regular
basis.
Good, bad or indifferent, itstill is impactful, it makes a
difference to the industry.
But are there any other majorwins that you guys have had or
seen that we haven't touched on?
Speaker 3 (20:50):
Yeah, you know.
Look, we fought incredibly hardand we're excited to see a
delay in the FDA traceabilityimplementation, enforcement
implementation.
There's still an enormousamount of work that needs to be
done there, but giving somebreathing room to the industry
to try to figure out how to getthis right not spend money
(21:11):
unnecessarily on things that maynot work I think was a great
win, and so we're excited andappreciative of the Trump
administration for listening tous and the industry in doing
that.
Kill a regulation that woulddramatically increase the cost
of refrigerants for grocers,particularly because the supply
(21:32):
is not there to meet thatregulatory demand.
And we have a CongressionalReview Act that NGA is leading
here in Washington with otherpartners to pull back the
management rule of that EPArefrigerant.
And the reason NGA is leadingthis is we have one of our
members in a rural part ofFlorida talked to his member of
Congress about this.
His member of Congress saidI'll introduce the Congress
(21:53):
Review Act bill for you becauseI know the impact this is going
to have on our local foodeconomy, and so they're doing
that.
We've also mentioned theantitrust work.
Seeing that the Robin SpatmanAct enforced for the first time
in generations is really good,and I think companies are paying
attention and are now educatingtheir sales teams and others
(22:15):
about how to make sure they'recomplying with the law and we're
glad to see that kind of movingforward.
And then we're very engaged onthe tax piece a lot of noise
around the tax extenders andwhatnot, but at the end of the
day a lot of our members arepass-through companies and
whatnot, but at the end of theday a lot of our members are
password companies.
We've got a lot of family-ownedbusinesses and we want to make
(22:36):
sure that those provisions thatwill expire at the end of this
year are going to be extended ormade permanent to make sure our
businesses can continue tofairly compete and have the
ability to serve their communityfor many years to come.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
Well, again, your team does such a great job I
mean under your leadership ofknowing where you need to be and
then getting that seat so thatyour voices can be heard, and
again, I can't underappreciatethe work that you guys are doing
up there and in Washington forus.
So we haven't touched on thetraceability rule and I know
we're all excited that this gotpushed back, but what does that
(23:09):
look like?
What should we be still doingand aware of and considering,
even though there is a delay inthe execution of it?
Speaker 3 (23:19):
Yeah, it's not going to go away, but we believe the
administration will be more opento ideas that can make it more
workable and more flexible.
Right, we want to make surethat industry is not spending an
enormous amount of money forvery little return or consumer
(23:39):
protections, and so those arethe conversations that we're
having these are not just NGAconversations, these are really
food supply chain conversationsand with other partners that are
part of that as well and makingsure we're bringing those
recommendations to the agencyand the new agency leadership
FDA reports up to Health andHuman Services.
That's Secretary Kennedy.
We've got a new FDAcommissioner that was just sworn
(24:01):
in last week or so and we'vegot a lot of policy people
changes.
I mean everyone's hearing aboutthe government people that are
retired been taking the buyouts,retired early or being let go.
Those are real, and there are alot of people that you know are
no longer at the agencies orleaving the agencies.
Some of them had some prettydeep wells of experience, and so
(24:22):
we probably have a lot ofeducation to do in kind of
rebuilding that.
But I think we have a lot ofopportunity there to make some
improvements.
But my advice to our membercompanies is to continue to be
working on this because it's notgoing to completely go away.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Is there any legislative actions or
initiatives that you recommendgrocers watch closely?
I mean, we've touched on somuch throughout this discussion,
but is there anything that weshould be looking at closely
that we haven't hit on?
Speaker 3 (24:51):
Yeah, look, I think it needs to continue to be
focused on tax.
When it moves, it may movequickly.
Tiny margins in the House ofRepresentatives means a lot of
the sausage baking I think isgoing to be done behind closed
doors, and so that's somethingthat you know.
We want to make sure that we'reall attuned to, and our members
should be talking to theirlocal members of Congress.
That's why we have such arobust store tour program.
(25:12):
Reach out to us.
We'd love to set a store tourup with your member of Congress
and you and you just talk abouthey, we're a family-owned
business, we're third generation, fifth generation, so the
estate tax is important to us.
We're grocery stores.
Most of our assets arenon-liquid, they're tied up in
(25:35):
inventory and fixtures andequipment and real estate.
Right, they need to understandthat.
I was listening to a member ofCongress on one of the business
talk shows on the way in to workone morning this week and he
said look, I've got a lot offamily-owned businesses in my
district, and so he was in tuneto that and saying we're not
going to allow them to have evenmore disparity between the
corporate rate and thepass-through rate.
So that's an important thing.
The Farm Bill, if it everhappens, is going to be key, and
then you continue to work onantitrust.
I think it's really importantfor members of Congress,
(25:56):
particularly the judiciarycommittees, to continue feeling
the pressure, to continuehearing from their small
business constituents that weexpect Congress and the elected
representatives to hold thefederal agencies accountable.
Laws that Congress has passedand the president signed into
law need to be enforced, and thecurrent chair of the FTC,
andrew Ferguson, believes thatand has said that publicly.
(26:17):
We want to make sure that theCongress holds those agencies'
feet to the fire and that theycontinue to do their jobs.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
I want to highlight that when you talk about doing
SOAR tours, if you have theopportunity or the ability to do
that, make time.
We've participated in it and Ido think it really is a game
changer in showing what reallyhappens.
How does this really impact?
You know whether it's X, y or Zthat we're talking about, but
how does it actually impact theday-to-day, the consumer, our
(26:46):
operations and being able toshow that it really has been
impactful?
Speaker 3 (26:51):
It is huge and, by the way, that tour might last 30
minutes, an hour and a half.
Whatever can pay years ofpositive dividends in terms they
remember those tours.
Speaker 2 (27:01):
Looking ahead with this being a Women Grocers of
America podcast, I would beamiss if I did not ask you what
advice you would give to womenin the grocery industry that
want to become more involved inpolitical advocacy or
influencing on policy.
Speaker 3 (27:15):
Over 150 women are part of the US Congress today.
Our Department of Ag Secretaryis a woman and a mom of four
kids, Our Small BusinessAdminist administrator is a
woman and we have other cabinetsecretaries, like Linda McMahon
in education, that are women.
We need our women leaders inthis industry to be active.
(27:38):
We need you to be involved inpublic policy and our store
tours.
Many are involved.
Today Our government relationscommittee has a really great
bench of women leaders that areinvolved and are great advocates
, as is our board of directors.
But we need you know when wehave our fly-in coming up here
in about a month away, a littleless than a month away, here in
Washington, May 20th through the21st.
(27:59):
You know we have a number ofwomen that will be part of that.
But the more women that come toWashington and are a voice, you
can have some kind of greaterinfluence because you'll stand
out and you can connect betterto those members of Congress or
administrative officials who arefemale leaders.
And I think if I look at some ofthe senior leaders at USDA
(28:20):
under the secretary, they'refemale leaders to come lend your
voice and your perspective, notjust as an industry leader but,
as you know, potentially a momor, you know, part of your
family, and to share thatperspective.
That's how we make a differenceand how we advance the policy
forward.
I would add to that, Kristen,because you've shared this with
(28:43):
me.
You know, first time you cameto Washington a number of years
ago.
It can be intimidating.
It can be intimidating to go upto Congress, and that's not
just for a woman, that's for aman as well.
But I think once you do it andyou see it and you experience it
, you realize this is important,this is really cool and I can
(29:03):
make a difference.
And so I encourage folks to bepart of the fly-ins, be part of
our executive conference, cometo Washington, lend your voice
and help independent grocerscontinue to make a difference in
Washington and then across thecountry.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
What you said, yes, was it intimidating?
Absolutely, and I don't to yourpoint.
I don't think.
I think that's gender neutral,right, it's intimidating it
absolutely is gender neutral.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
Trust me, yes.
Speaker 2 (29:27):
And your team does such a great job of educating us
and letting us know what weneed to be aware of when we go
into those meetings.
You don't have to be an experton anything.
What you have to be able to dois tell your story and, again,
the impact that that leaves onour representatives pays
(29:47):
dividends for a very long time.
So I encourage everybody toexperience the fly and I'll be
in DC here in May, and not toofar from where we're at today
and I'm looking forward toanother great round of
conversations and being able tojust tell that story.
Speaker 3 (30:03):
I will add to that it is telling a story.
We don't want you to be apolicy expert.
I don't want you to be alobbyist.
I don't want you to be a legalexpert.
I just want you to be a grocer.
I want you to be a foodindustry executive.
I want you to come and tellyour story.
That's it, because you canexplain it better than anybody
how credit card fees areimpacting your business or how
lack of antitrust enforcement iscreating unlevel playing fields
(30:26):
and hurting the communitiesthat you're trying to serve.
We'll take care of the rest.
Speaker 2 (30:33):
Just come tell your story and you can make a
difference Absolutely.
And I think the other thingthat I learned is asking
questions and I learned a lotfrom just observing.
I was in a meeting with arepresentative that we did ask
some questions and point somethings out.
And next thing, I know we havethe law, the written law, on the
table and we're looking throughthe book and having just really
(30:53):
impactful conversations thatwere eye opening to not only us
but the representative as well.
Not only an awesome experienceto be on the Hill in Washington,
but it definitely does havesignificant value to the
industry as a whole.
Speaker 3 (31:07):
And it's cool.
I'm sorry.
Washington is a beautiful city,it's your capital.
You know, I've never met anyonewho's come here who wasn't
wowed.
It's just really neat to bepart of.
Speaker 2 (31:19):
Greg, as we wrap up, I just want to say thank you so
much for your time today.
I know you guys are busy inWashington with everything going
on, so I do appreciate youtaking the time to step aside
and have this conversation.
Speaker 3 (31:29):
Well, hey, it's wonderful to be with you and
your listeners.
Thanks for the opportunityagain to come on to the podcast
and I look forward to seeingfolks in September in Atlanta
for the WGA Summit.
It's going to be fantastic.
Let's see if we can't sell thatevent out here before we get to
the summer.
Thanks, greg, I appreciate it.
Great to be with you.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
Thank you for tuning in to CheckoutGR, a bonus
podcast episode of Women Grocersof America.
We hope today's conversationinspired you to be more engaged
with the policy issues shapingour industry.
Subscribe to Grocery From HerSeat for more insights and
conversations with women leadersin the grocery world.
Stay informed, stay engaged andshare Grocery From Her Seat on
(32:11):
your favorite podcast listeningplatform.
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