City-run grocery stores to offer 30% discount on basic food items
Shoppers can expect to see items like produce, meat, seafood, bread, rice, beans and cheese among 20 additional items to be slashed by 30% at each of the borough city-run stores.
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A 30% discount is on tap for city-run grocery stores in New York once they open, as the Mamdani administration says it will reduce prices on certain basic food items, while other items will be sold at market rate.
"Too many New Yorkers feeling like groceries are out of reach and that is unacceptable," said Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Shoppers can expect to see items like produce, meat, seafood, bread, rice, beans and cheese among 20 additional items to be slashed by 30% at each of the borough city-run stores. Once a month, the prices will be set and the discount will run for an entire month before they are re-evaluated.
"That means no weekly fluctuations or sticker shock," the mayor said.
The administration estimates shoppers could save about $90 per month or roughly $1,000 a year on their grocery bill.
Making groceries affordable was one of Mamdani's promises on the campaign trail. He allocated $70 million in the city's capital budget to make it happen. Earlier this year, La Marqueta in Harlem and La Peninsula in Hunts Point were announced as the first two city-run grocery store sites, as there is expected to be one in each of the five boroughs. All five are anticipated to be open by the end of his first term in 2029.
The administration put out a request for approvals looking for an experienced grocery operator to bring their vision to life.
"We want an operator that ensures workers' rights are respected, that provides good-paying jobs and benefits and safe, reliable working conditions," said Jeanny Pak, interim president and CEO of NYC EDC.
Critics of the project worry it could create competition for local mom-and-pop grocers and bodegas. The mayor says that won't be the case because the stores will not be selling items that help drive revenue for local grocers like tobacco, lottery tickets, hot food or alcohol.
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"This is an approach that looks to address the question of affordability and food access without also harming the other entities of addressing food access that continue to exist," said Mamdani.
Kenny Minaya, commissioner for Small Business Services, says they are working with small grocery retailers to ensure they know how to set pricing in their stores and to ensure they will not be seen as competition to the city-run stores.
"I've participated in multiple roundtable discussions with affected grocers to hear their concerns. That's why the mayor's announcement and makes clear we're not looking to compete. We're only going to sell a certain amount of goods. The basket of goods, basket of core goods," Minaya said.
The first municipal grocery store is expected to open next year in the Bronx.
