Walmart deductions get attention because the volume is obvious.
The portal is active. The dollars are visible. The chargeback codes are familiar. If you are a Consumer Packaged Goods supplier doing meaningful business with Walmart, it is easy to believe that Walmart is the deduction problem.
But that is usually not the whole story.
On Feb. 9, 2026, Kroger appointed Greg Foran as CEO—effective immediately—ending an unusually long stretch of interim leadership after Rodney McMullen’s exit in 2025.
And this isn’t business as usual for Kroger.
Foran is widely described as Kroger’s first external CEO hire. That matters because it signals the board doesn’t just want stability. It wants a reset.
