FTC sues PepsiCo, alleging unfair pricing for retailers

LAUREN TAYLOR: The Federal Trade Commission sued PepsiCo, alleging the company gave a big-box store an unfair price advantage.

It’s part of a set of lawsuits that will be some of the last under the Biden administration.

In the suit, the FTC said PepsiCo gave pricing advantages to one large chain but did not give those incentives to smaller retailers. The agency accused PepsiCo of inflating prices for American consumers.

The lawsuit did not name the company PepsiCo sold to at a discount because it did not engage in wrongdoing. But outlets including The Wall Street Journal and NPR reported Walmart was the chain PepsiCo allegedly gave the discounts.

PepsiCo denied the charges in the lawsuit in a statement to multiple media outlets, saying, “PepsiCo’s practices are in line with industry norms and we do not favor certain customers by offering discounts or promotional support to some customers and not others.”

The FTC is enforcing a law originally enacted during the Great Depression banning suppliers from selling goods to retailers at different prices. Regulators slowed their enforcement of the law in the 1980s, as part of a broader trend toward loosening regulations.

The FTC voted to advance the lawsuit by a 3-2 margin, with both Republicans voting against filing it. In a dissent, Republican Commissioner Melissa Holyoak called the lawsuit “the worst case” she has seen while on the commission.

For Straight Arrow News, I’m Lauren Taylor.

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