A repeat of early 2020 when toilet paper and other essentials ran bare, the start of 2023 is seeing "a lot of empty shelves" at Kroger, according to numerous reports, some containing video evidence of lingering supply chain problems.
Not only are Kroger shelves missing many essentials, but prices for things that are still in stock, most notably eggs, are skyrocketing to unprecedented levels. (Related: Remember when Kroger punished unvaccinated employees by removing their covid benefits and charging them higher insurance premiums?)
On the last day of 2022, a popular YouTube account called AdventuresWithDanno visited a local Kroger store to document any changes in inventory and pricing. Many empty shelves with only a few remaining ultra-high-priced items could be seen.
"We are at Kroger, and are noticing price increases on groceries, and a lot of empty shelves!" the video's caption reads. "We are here to check out skyrocketing prices and the empty shelves situation! It's getting rough out here as stores seem to be struggling with getting products!"
One particular area of the store with very bare shelves was the pet products aisle, which was missing most of the store-brand items. The only things left were a few overpriced items of lesser-sought-out brands.
"If you find cat [litter], don't worry about the price: just get some," the channel host said. "We're seeing inconvenience stickers everywhere, and these are fresh. This must be becoming an issue again."
Will 2023 become the year of mass starvation?
The store's dairy case was also in shambles with most of the egg products missing.
"It's exactly what we thought with all the eggs," the host said. "People are starting to buy other eggs because the store brands – the cheapest ones you can get – are getting really expensive."
In the inflation department, Kroger appears to be jacking up original prices on items only to mark them "down" from there and pretend they are on sale – even though the end "sale" price is still higher than the original.
A five-pound bag of mandarin oranges, for instance, is now on "sale" for $6.49 at Kroger. The original price, though, was hiked up to $7.99, making it not so much of a sale after all.
"These price increases are just insane!" wrote one of the video viewers in the chat section.
"You have to wonder where it's all going to end."
Many others visited their local Kroger stores to confirm and found much the same thing: prices are rising and there are shortages of a lot of different things.
"Just paid $5.49 for a dozen Kroger large [eggs]," one wrote, adding that the same egg section was "totally empty" just a few days prior.
One person in Kentucky said the local Kroger store was so empty that it looked like it was in the process of closing down. An official from the company reportedly confirmed that, despite how it appears, the store will remain in operation.
"Most of dairy and meat section completely empty," the customer revealed. "Shopped here for 30 yrs almost and I have never seen it like this."
Another customer in Ohio sent a photo to Kroger of bare shelves at his store, asking on Twitter: "where did all the food go @Kroger?" The company acknowledged this tweet with the following response, along with a reassurance that the corporate office had reached out to that specific location's management to address the issue:
"Yikes! We're sorry to see your local Kroger shelves are empty!"
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