The food retail industry in the United States comprises foods sold at grocery stores, convenience stores, drug stores, mass merchandisers, and foodservice facilities. Major players in the industry include Walmart, Kroger, and Walgreens. However, despite the growth of such major supermarket chains and the emergence of online food purchases, there is still a significant network of specialty food and convenience stores meeting the needs of local neighborhoods. In the United States, retail and food services sales amounted to over eight trillion U.S. dollars in 2023, an increase of more than three percent from the previous year. The total number of supermarkets and other grocery stores in the U.S. has declined slightly to about 62 thousand, with sales of that format hitting an estimated 846 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, which accounted for 85 percent of the ………..