The Kroger Co. — Ethics Grade C

The Kroger Co. receives an overall ethics grade of C (48/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Food & Beverage. Market cap: Large Cap.

Category scores

• labor: 35
• privacy: 80
• consumer: 30
• environment: 45
• humanRights: 60

Documented incidents (3)

• MyTime Payroll Glitches (high, 2023) — Faced multiple lawsuits after a new payroll system resulted in thousands of employees missing paychecks or being underpaid for months.
• Opioid Crisis Involvement (high, 2024) — Agreed to pay $1.2 billion to settle claims from states and tribes that its pharmacies contributed to the national opioid epidemic by failing to oversee suspicious orders.
• Broken Cage-Free Promise (medium, 2021) — Criticized for failing to meet its 2025 target for selling 100% cage-free eggs, shifting its pledge to an 'aspirational goal'.

Documented good deeds

• Zero Hunger | Zero Waste — Donated 3 billion meals since 2017 and redirected millions of pounds of surplus food to food banks instead of landfills.

Ethical alternatives

• Costco Wholesale — Known for industry-leading wages, benefits, and employee retention rates.