Judges block merger between owners of Safeway and Kroger

A day after judges blocked the merger, the grocery chain Albertsons on Dec. 11 backed out of its $25 billion merger with Kroger and sued its bigger rival for failing to push hard enough for federal regulatory approval of the deal.

Albertsons is the parent company of Safeway in Alaska; Kroger is the parent company of Fred Meyer in Alaska.

Albertsons’ decision to sue came the day after two judges halted the merger in separate court cases. U.S. District Court Judge Adrienne Nelson issued a preliminary injunction blocking the merger Dec. 10 after holding a three-week hearing in Portland. An hour l...