Fordham Law Professor Zephyr Teachout, author of “Break ’Em Up: Recovering Our Freedom From Big Ag, Big Tech and Big Money,” explains in this New York Times op-ed why she believes cities have the power to bring down food prices and bring life to food deserts.
A big feature of Zohran Mamdani’s upset win in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary was his focus on the unfairness of current food prices. He proposed piloting five city-run grocery stores. Voters loved it. Pundits mocked it. The idea was labeled communist, irrelevant, dangerous and silly. But the mockery missed the larger point: Cities have the power to bring down food prices and bring life to food deserts. They just haven’t been using it.
The food system in the United States is rigged in favor of big retailers and suppliers in several ways. Big retailers often flex their muscles to demand special deals; to make up the difference, suppliers then charge the smaller stores more. Those discounts are one reason independent grocers struggle to survive. They’re a major reason we have food deserts. They’re also a major reason that prices are so insane.
Read “The Solution to $10 Eggs Lies Within New York City Limits” on The New York Times.