Amazon recently added perishable groceries to its same-day delivery service in one thousand US cities, with plans to double that number by the end of 2025. The splashy announcement drove up Amazon’s stock price at the expense of DoorDash, Kroger, and Instacart. Seeking context for this development, Benjamin Y. Fong interviewed Errol Schweizer, a former national vice president of grocery at Whole Foods. Schweizer publishes The Checkout Grocery Update, a newsletter on the grocery industry, and has a regular column in Forbes magazine.

This interview covers the tight margins in the industry, how Walmart became such a dominant player in grocery, and how the “hourglassing” of the grocery market reflects inequality in the United States. And while Amazon’s new play in perishables has investors excited, Schweizer doesn’t think the e-commerce cost structure works out when it comes to food. Stick around until the end for some thoughts on public grocery stores.