Grocery Stores Remove Pepsi and Lay's From Shelves Over Price Hikes

A grocery store chain in France has decided to stop selling PepsiCo products because they have become too expensive – a bold retaliation against alleged price-gouging. The retailer is called Carrefour, and it announced to customers that it will not be selling any products from the PepsiCo parent company, including soft drinks, Lay's chips, Quaker cereals, or Lipton teas, among others. According to a report by CNN, PepsiCo is in negotiations with the company to rectify this issue.

Carrefour grocery stores now have a sign displayed beside the PepsiCo products on shelves, reading: "We are no longer selling this brand due to unacceptable price increases. We apologize for any inconvenience caused." That means once the current stock of those products is sold out, they will not be restocked – at least not until the two companies can reach a new agreement. Carrefour reportedly plans to pull PepsiCo products from shelves in other countries where it operates as well, including Italy, Spain and Belgium.

PepsiCo told CNN that it has already been in discussion with Carrefour for several months over this issue. The corporation said that it will "continue to engage in good faith in order to try to ensure that our products are available."

Carrefour has been actively fighting against price-gouging over the last few years as the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters have caused inflation and increased the price of energy, labor and raw materials. Reuters described this as Carrefour's "shrinkflation campaign," noting that the retailer has put up signage warning customers about increasing prices and smaller portion sizes. For example, the retailer pointed out that Lindt chocolates had shrunk in size while increasing in price – all while the cost of raw materials had eased back down after the pandemic-era inflation let up.

PepsiCo CEO Ramon L. Laguarta reportedly discussed this topic during an earnings call back in October. He said that the company's economists anticipate "higher inflation" in the coming year, and that they have decided to raise prices or keep them high in anticipation of these pressures. According to a report by FoodDive, Laguarta was paid a total of $39.5 million in 2022 for his work at the company.

As these negotiations go on, Carrefour will reportedly lean more heavily on its in-store generic brands in the coming years. Meanwhile, other retailers, food corporations and consumer advocate groups are having similar arguments around the world. Economists are split over the trends for inflation in 2024.