Before you head over to the produce department and grab a few tomatoes to hurl in my direction, hear me out: the Albertsons-Kroger merger could be a very good thing for consumers.

Chris Cargill

Chris Cargill

Why? Because, like it or not, the way we shop has dramatically changed. More Americans are doing their shopping online or at a discount warehouse. Fewer go inside the grocery store. For many, that weekly trip to the market is becoming a thing of the past. Online and warehouse competition has changed everything — and it has helped lower the cost of many goods.

Chris Cargill is the president of Mountain States Policy Center, an independent research organization based in Idaho, Montana, Eastern Washington and Wyoming. Online at mountainstatespolicy.org.

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