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Grocery Chains Are Passing Trump Tariff Costs on to US Consumers With Higher Prices: Report
"Reckless tariff policy is wreaking warrantless chaos on our economy, with grocery giants shifting market uncertainty onto consumers," said Accountable.US president Caroline Ciccone.
Aug 26, 2025
As leading grocery chains increase prices on essentials, they are blaming US President Donald Trump's tariffs for raising the cost of living for households across the country.
According to the Consumer Price Index, the price of food has increased by 3% in the past year, with meats, poultry, fish, and eggs getting 5.6% more expensive from June 2024 to June 2025.
In a poll published this month by the Associated Press and the National Opinion Research Center, 90% of Americans reported that they considered the cost of groceries a source of stress, with 53% describing it as a "major" source of stress.
In earnings calls and public statements, executives of many of America's largest and most profitable grocery retailers are citing Trump's tariffs as justification for passing on the costs to consumers, according to a new report released on Tuesday by Accountable.US.
In a first-quarter earnings call in May, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said that while the company was better positioned than others to absorb the cost of tariffs, they would still "result in higher prices" for consumers. Since then, some grocery items at America's largest retailer have shown 40% hikes that have outraged consumers, fueling calls for a boycott.
On another call Thursday, McMillon said, "We've continued to see our costs increase each week, which we expect will continue into the third and fourth quarters."
"Trump's tariffs are making groceries more expensive," said Accountable.US. "Everyday Americans pay the cost while corporations and the wealthy profit."
Costco's chief financial officer, Gary Millerchip, told shareholders in May that the company "saw inflation as a result of tariffs because we import certain fresh items from Central and South America."
Kroger's CFO, Todd Foley, projected similar hikes to fresh food prices beginning in March. Though Foley said the impact would not likely be as significant as those experienced by their international competitors, he said the tariffs would likely cause "mid-single digit effects" on the costs of produce imported from Mexico and Canada.
Albertsons CEO Susan Miller has acknowledged that the company is raising prices on some goods to compensate for tariffs. But it has also turned the screws on its suppliers, demanding that they eat the cost of the new levies.
In the American Prospect, David Dayen described the latter as an example of how the tariffs were helping monopolies consolidate their power.
"Albertsons holds a significant market share in the grocery market, particularly in the western United States," he wrote. "Independent grocers, however, typically don't have the same ability to dictate terms to suppliers, and therefore will have to take whatever they can get."
Many of the companies currently raising prices have previously been caught or even admitted to price-gouging consumers to take advantage of inflation in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The tariffs, a regressive tax that Trump has suggested as a way to offset the massive tax cuts given to the wealthy, have further exacerbated that pain.
"While Trump grants massive tax cuts to massive corporations and the ultra-rich," said Accountable.US President Caroline Ciccone, "his reckless tariff policy is wreaking warrantless chaos on our economy, with grocery giants shifting market uncertainty onto consumers."
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Walmart's DEI Rollback is Dangerous for Workers Like Me
That's why I'm calling on shareholders to step up.
Jun 05, 2025
For nearly seven years, I’ve clocked in and out at a Walmart in Memphis, Tennessee, where I stock shelves, help customers, and push myself through double shifts to make ends meet. Like so many of my colleagues, I’ve poured my time and energy into this company, and also like so many of them, that hard work has gone unnoticed.
I have more than 15 years of managerial retail experience, but I still find it extremely difficult to advance at Walmart. As a Black woman, this is unfortunately not a unique experience, especially at Walmart. Even though I’ve been working for the company for years, people who look like me are rarely given opportunities for growth. Management will keep you at the cash register for decades, with little hope for a raise or a promotion.
So when Walmart announced it was joining the wave of corporations that are rolling back their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policies, it felt like a punch to the gut, and makes me question if I still belong here.
While Walmart executives are granting themselves multi-million dollar raises, the Black and brown workers who make their company successful are struggling.
Walmart is the single largest private employer of Black workers in the United States, and as the biggest retailer in the country, Walmart is granted the opportunity to set the standard for other retailers across the nation. Their policies don’t just influence what happens inside its stores — they shape the lives of millions of working families across this country.
Nationwide, more than half of Walmart associates are women and people of color, yet the majority of leadership roles still go to white men.
But it’s not just limited opportunities for growth that are stifling Black Walmart employees. I can tell you from my experience, and the conversations I’ve had with colleagues, that inequities are taking place at stores across the country. We see who gets promoted and who doesn’t. Which employees get steady work hours, and which get sent home early by their managers. We see who gets ignored, and who gets a voice.
These discrepancies in how Walmart associates are treated too often seem to fall along racial and gender lines.
DEI initiatives were created to address these very problems by helping to promote fair treatment and put an end to racial and gender discrimination in the workplace. These are policies created to ensure everyone has a fair shot, and that every worker is treated with respect and dignity.
This common sense framework benefits not just workers, but also a company’s long-term success. A diverse and inclusive workplace is a stronger workplace. When employees feel valued and see opportunities for growth, regardless of their race or background, they are much more engaged, productive, and loyal.
With DEI now cast aside, Walmart workers are feeling the opposite. We feel left behind, jaded, and betrayed.
But shareholders have a powerful opportunity to step up and support Walmart's workforce. In June, I’ll be presenting a shareholder proposal, alongside United for Respect Education Fund, calling for a third-party independent racial equity audit at Walmart.
This proposal is not about pointing fingers. Instead it’s about seeking truth, accountability, and transparency so that we can begin to actually change the culture at Walmart.
For years, Walmart has stated its commitment to diversity and inclusion, and an audit would provide an objective assessment of whether these commitments translate into real equity within the company.
We cannot sit by as Walmart makes hollow promises, and we cannot roll back the clock on workplace equality. While Walmart executives are granting themselves multi-million dollar raises, the Black and brown workers who make their company successful are struggling. Walmart has the ability to level the playing field by setting the gold standard for employee treatment. This is a company that not only can afford to do better, but has a moral obligation to do better.
The proposal sends a clear message: we need transparency, accountability, and a genuine commitment to racial equity that goes beyond words. As someone who has dedicated years to this company, I urge shareholders to stand with the workers who make them profitable, and ensure that accountability isn’t lost with Walmart's abandonment of DEI.
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Trump Tells Walmart to 'Eat' the Cost of His Tariffs
"If you think Walmart is going to eat the costs of tariffs, then you don't understand Walmart's greed and how it exploits its customers and workers to make its billions," said one observer.
May 17, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump verbally thrashed Walmart on Saturday following the retailer's announcement this week that it expects to raise prices on some goods as a result of tariffs imposed by the White House.
On his social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote that Walmart should "STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain."
"Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, 'EAT THE TARIFFS,' and not charge valued customers ANYTHING. I'll be watching, and so will your customers!!!" he wrote.
On Thursday, leaders at Walmart said that they will have to raise prices in response to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration even after lowered duties on Chinese imports were announced.
The Trump administration has placed 10% universal tariff on goods entering the United States and imposed higher tariffs on goods coming from China—though on Monday the two countries said they reached a deal to temporarily lower the tariffs they had imposed on one another while they try to hash out a trade deal. Imports from China will now be subject to a 30% tariff, whereas before many goods coming to the U.S. from China previously had at least a 145% tariff.
CEO Doug McMillon said that Walmart, which is known for its low prices, will do its best to keep prices low, but that "given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced levels announced this week, we aren't able to absorb all the pressure given the reality of narrow retail margins."
One observer expressed skepticism that Walmart would heed Trump's demand.
"If you think Walmart is going to eat the costs of tariffs, then you don't understand Walmart's greed and how it exploits its customers and workers to make its billions," said Melanie D'Arrigo, the executive director of a group fighting for universal healthcare in New York State.
Economists expect the cost of tariffs, which are a form of tax applied on imports that can be used to support homegrown industries that employ American workers, to be largely passed on from businesses to American consumers.
In an analysis of the Trump administration's tariff regime as of late April, with the higher duties on Chinese goods in place, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that in 2026 the poorest Americans would see the biggest tariff-induced tax hikes compared to other income groups.
Some observers also used Trump's social media post to highlight that in the past he has claimed that other countries would bear the brunt of tariffs.
The social media posts echoes a recent episode when, last month, after a news report that Amazon would display tariff-based price increases next to the price of products online, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called such a move "a hostile and political act." After a call between Trump and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, a company spokesperson said displays had been considered for only a section of the site but wouldn't be happening.
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