America’s Food Desert Proliferates as Grocery Stores Shut Down En Masse

A quiet crisis has been unfolding in the US food retail landscape, obscured by rising consumer anxiety and higher grocery prices. Beneath this noise, major grocery chains are closing stores at an alarming rate.

Kroger, one of the nation’s largest retailers, plans to shutter 60 locations over the next 18 months, citing underperformance as the reason. This move affects not just Kroger-branded stores but also other brands within its umbrella, including regional names like Fred Meyer and Harris Teeter. However, Kroger is far from alone in this strategy.

Discount grocery chains, often touted as beacons of relief for consumers struggling with rising food costs, are themselves disappearing in many areas. Aldi’s plans to expand up to 3,200 locations by 2028 require it to cut underperforming stores – a decision that seems to prioritize expansion over meeting consumer needs in the present.

The impact is already being felt on the ground. In Oregon, Safeway closed its Newport location after three decades of serving locals. This closure follows the Hechinger Mall store in Washington, D.C., which shuttered last May after 40 years in operation. Similar closures have occurred across the country, with Hayward’s Jackson St. Safeway in California’s Bay Area closing as early as February this year.

When questioned about these moves, Safeway attributed them to strategic decisions driven by real estate considerations and a desire to reinvest resources into other stores within their portfolio. However, such explanations raise more questions than they answer: what exactly constitutes “underperformance” in this context? And how do closures like those of Safeway’s long-standing locations square with the company’s stated commitment to serving its customers?

The fact that these closures are part of a broader trend, with Albertsons’ parent company behind them all, suggests a systemic issue rather than isolated business decisions. CEO Susan Morris’s assertion that store profitability has not seen a “dramatic shift or increase” seems at odds with the sheer number of closures – 42 in total for Safeway and its affiliates as of this writing.

This trend speaks to a deeper problem: America’s food deserts are proliferating, leaving communities without access to affordable groceries. The disappearance of these stores is not just an economic issue but also a matter of social justice, exacerbating existing disparities in food security and further concentrating the nation’s wealth in the hands of fewer, more powerful corporations.

As this crisis unfolds, it becomes clear that the solution cannot be merely a question of corporate strategy or supply chain optimization. We need a broader reckoning with the economic and social forces driving these closures – and a commitment to preserving access to affordable groceries for all Americans, not just those in affluent areas or privileged zip codes.

The future of American food retail hangs precariously in the balance, caught between competing visions of what constitutes “success” in this sector. As we face this crisis head-on, it is imperative that we prioritize not just profit margins but also community well-being – and the very notion of what makes a grocery store truly successful in the first place.