WASHINGTON (July 31, 2026) — Today, the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) sent a letter to Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson urging the agency to be particularly rigorous in its ongoing antitrust review of Sysco’s proposed $29 billion acquisition of Restaurant Depot. PPI argues that the merger would combine the nation’s largest broadline food distributor with the leading cash-and-carry wholesaler.
PPI’s analysis explains that the Sysco-RD merger would create an enormous food distribution ecosystem with the potential to reduce competition, raise food costs for restaurants, and ultimately increase prices for American consumers for food away from home. Protecting competition throughout the food supply chain is essential for affordable food prices for consumers, who are already besieged by high food price inflation.
The letter unpacks how a Sysco-RD merger would have a foot in two critical markets: broadline and cash-and-carry. The merger could entrench or extend Sysco’s significant market power, weakening competitive constraints that currently benefit independent restaurants and consumers. PPI notes that the 2023 U.S. Department of Justice/Federal Trade Commission Merger Guidelines carefully outline this competitive concern.
The result could be less price discipline across broadline and cash-and-carry, while locking customers into the larger Sysco-RD system. In addition to higher prices, the merger could also reduce innovation and service quality and discourage new entrants in food distribution. PPI urges the FTC to carefully scrutinize the merger and take appropriate action to protect competition and consumers.
Read the full letter here.
Founded in 1989, PPI is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Find an expert and learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org. Follow us at @ppi.
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Media Contact: Ian O’Keefe – iokeefe@ppionline.org
