Transcript: Mayor Mamdani Unveils 30% Discount — Including All Produce, All Meat and Key Pantry Staples — at New Municipal Grocery Stores
Zohran Mamdani on NYC Mayor's Office transcripts.
Passages
Good morning, Brooklyn! It is an honor to be here at the Campaign Against Hunger with so many friends and partners. Can we have a round of applause for Dr. Melony Samuels for welcoming us here and for your lifetime of service to the people of New York? For nearly 30 years, you have led the fight against hunger here in our city, growing this operation from a small emergency food program to a leading food distributor that serves hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers each year and provides programming on how to live a healthier life. I also want to acknowledge leaders here from our administration. Our deputy mayor for Economic Justice, Julie Su; and our incredible interim president and CEO, Jeanny Pak of the Economic Development Corporation. I would be remiss if I didn't also acknowledge a future Assembly member here in the crowd, Christian Celeste. And we are here today speaking of leaders in government, outside of government — and we also know that alongside us today are so many leaders, whether they have been in civil service or also we have organized labor who is here with us, RWDSU Unite Near Local 100. And we come together and I ask that we begin by reflecting on the number 30. It's history, it's significance and it's future here in New York City. A token to ride the subway cost 30 cents in 1970, which was a 50 percent increase from the previous year that sparked outcry, protests and led to 12 arrests. The digits three zero have been donned by some of our most beloved athletes: from the Liberty’s Breanna Stewart to the Yankees’ Willie Randolph to the Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist. And researchers estimate that at least 30 percent of grocery stores across the five boroughs are currently playing the song “Drops of Jupiter” at this very moment. However, we know that for many New Yorkers, 30 percent at the grocery store means something very different. Since 2019, food prices have soared at grocery stores around the country by roughly 30 percent, in fact. Talk to shoppers around the city, and you'll often hear the same frustration: wages have not kept up. Making matters even worse, some corporations have built out technology that allows for something called “surveillance pricing,” collecting personal data to charge some people more than others for the same carton of eggs, for the same gallon of milk. All of this leaves too many New Yorkers feeling like groceries are out of reach. And that is frankly unacceptable. Which is why City government is stepping in to make people's lives more affordable. Today, I am proud to announce a collection of essential staples that will be predictably 30 percent cheaper at all five of our city-run grocery stores. This core set of goods will include all fresh produce, meat, and seafood, along with 20 other essential items like cheese, milk and bread. Here's how it will work. Once a month, our five city-run grocery stores will set prices for this core set of goods at 30 percent below typical retail prices — no exceptions, no gimmicks. The savings will last for the entire month. That means no weekly fluctuations nor sticker shock at the checkout line; not for our seniors living on fixed incomes nor for the parents who rely on a regular supply of apple slices to keep toddler tantrums at bay. Now, can we all see this incredible example of produce in my hand? Now you will see these plantains here. So, for anyone wondering how much these beautiful plantains might cost, you can use this QR code or head to grocery.nyc to access our policy report. I'm going to demonstrate exactly what that means. Ladies and gentlemen, the QR code does work. You can see this here. There you can learn more about our city-owned grocery store program, including the 30 percent discount. Thirty percent off adds up to real money for New Yorkers with an estimated $90 saved on grocery bills each month. That is more than $1,000 saved every year. And just as important as money, those savings add up to time. For many, that 30 percent discount is the difference between an evening spent around the dinner table with family or working another double shift to make ends meet. Our vision of affordable, well-run, city-owned grocery stores can only be accomplished with experienced operators who know how to source products, stock the shelves and help answer shopper questions. So, today, we are also issuing an RFP for private operators to help us with the day-to-day management of our five city-run grocery stores. If you know how to run a grocery store and you want to do more to help your fellow New Yorkers, I encourage you to head to grocery.nyc or scan the QR code to learn more about how to apply. As we make these stores a reality, we are committed to ensuring those who work here will have good contracts for good jobs with store workers receiving family sustaining wages and benefits. In the wealthiest city, in the wealthiest country in the history of the world, no New Yorker should have to worry about being able to afford to feed their family. This sentiment, frankly, is not new. More than a century ago, Mayor Fiorello La Guardia witnessed the Food Riots of 1917, led by immigrant mothers incensed with soaring food prices. Those mothers took to the streets to overturn push carts and eventually called for a boycott of marked up goods. Years later, when he became mayor, he spearheaded the creation of municipally owned markets to reduce the cost of groceries for those same immigrant mothers. He did so because he believed in a simple definition of the task of government to make people's lives better. Today, we are one step closer to fulfilling that fundamental responsibility. Thank you very much. Now with that, I'm going to pass it over to our deputy mayor, Julie Su.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceSo, we've talked about five city-run grocery stores, one in each borough, and thus far we've announced La Marqueta in Manhattan and La Peninsula in the Bronx. And these two sites showcase the example of when you are speaking about a dense neighborhood, there is more than enough market for both existing grocers as well as one city-run grocery store. When we're talking about La Marqueta, we're talking about more than 65,000 New Yorkers who live within 10 minutes of that grocery store site. When we're talking about La Peninsula, we're talking about more than 150,000 New Yorkers who live in the Hunts Point area alone. And what we've seen is that the city already operates subsidized markets, for example, at Essex Street Market. And those are operating near multiple grocers, multiple bodegas and we have not seen harm to local stores or operators. What we've also seen is that this is not the only approach that we have to dealing with the question of food, food insecurity and also food operators. Just last week, we were proud to announce OPEN, which is not only a more than 50 legislative reforms and regulatory reforms that will lower the cost of keeping a business open and the time that it takes to liaise with City government; but is also a permanent approach for us at City government to cut red tape to ensure bodegas, grocery store owners, a wide variety of small businesses across New York City can continue to flourish. Because we see this as a city that is big enough for more than the thousand existing grocery stores that we currently have and five city-run grocery stores, one in each borough.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceWe see in this city an opportunity to take an all-of-the-above-approach. We are going to continue to work with incredible partners like the ones that we're here with today, as well as ensure that food pantries across the five boroughs can flourish. And what we have seen is that far too often when it comes to City government's approach to delivering on affordability for groceries, there have been — there's always been the question of intermediaries, whatever it may be. And we are excited to deliver directly to New Yorkers that lower cost of essential goods. We're talking about a 30 percent discount across essential goods that will be the same at every single one of those five city-run grocery stores. And what we are also talking about is city-run grocery stores, which will not be selling cigarettes, or alcohol, or lottery tickets or hot foods — those are a lot of the [items] that drive revenue for a lot of existing grocers, existing bodegas. This is an approach that looks to address the question of affordability and food access without also harming the ability for other entities to continue to exist.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceMy argument is multifaceted. The first thing I would say is that this is a model that builds off of what we already see in existence with Essex Street Market. And with that approach, there is a discounted approach that has not yielded any kind of a negative impact on bodegas or grocery stores around it. And we know that because if it had been, it would be something that we'd be talking about. And yet, what it has been is instead accepted as a fabric of life in that neighborhood. The second is that we are not looking to compete with bodegas or grocery stores when it comes to their ability to survive. What we're looking to do is to provide affordability that is guaranteed to New Yorkers. And we know that a lot of what drives revenue for these bodegas [and] grocery stores, those are things that make it possible for them to continue to operate. Those are not things we have any interest in competing for. The last point that I would say is the absence of affordability in this city has pushed so many working-class New Yorkers out of the city. And those are working-class New Yorkers that could be customers for these bodegas, that could be customers for grocery stores across the five boroughs. And instead, we've seen an exodus. And we also know that, where we are in New York City, it's important to acknowledge that the affordability crisis has affected every New Yorker. However, that effect has not been evenly borne. Two-hundred thousand Black New Yorkers have been pushed out of this city in the last few decades. And that's effectively a reverse great migration. And that’s something that we have to bring to an end with every single tool at our disposal.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceSo, our RFP makes very clear that this is a program for New Yorkers to be able to put food on the table, not a program for people to be able to make a quick buck through reselling. I'm going pass it over to our EDC head, Jeanny Pak, to add some additional details.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceThere's always more to be done. We can never accept that a 12-year-old boy sitting on his bicycle outside of a bodega could be killed in our city. And my heart breaks for the family of Jacob Freytes. We are speaking of a young man who should have been able to do what every New Yorker should be able to, which is just live their life in the summer in the city. And I was only a few blocks away from where he was killed just yesterday at the Bronx Dominican Day Parade. And even at a day that so many look forward to for so much of the year, it hung over that parade because it is an ache in our souls. And I am so appreciative of the work of our NYPD of having gotten more than 2,000 guns off of the streets in these first seven months and in the fact that they have already apprehended William Ferrer for the murder of Jacob and for the shooting of two others. And yet we also know that we can never say that enough has been done when we are seeing our children being killed on our streets.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceWe know that Haitian New Yorkers, Syrian New Yorkers, they are a part of the fabric of this city. And we also know that while a judge stayed that decision until today, that it still has left so many living in a state of permanent insecurity and anxiety. And we are speaking about New Yorks who have been a part the lifeblood of the city, have helped to make this city what it is. And our administration is not going to allow these communities to be terrorized on their own. We are going to be standing up for these communities, and we have instructed our Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs to continue to connect families to free and confidential legal help. That is something that is going to continue, as is the fact that our City services are going be accessible no matter what the person calling status is. And at the federal level, we also know that Congress does have the power to give these families permanent protection, whether they be Syrian New Yorkers or Haitian New Yorkers. And it should use it now before more parents are separated from their children. And it is something that I am very much adding my voice to the call for Congress to take this action to do.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceI will proudly honor the families, the survivors, the first responders forever impacted by that horrific terror attack by standing alongside them at this year's 9/11 commemoration, reaffirming that we will never forget the solemn day felt by all of us who call this city home and, frankly, by all of us who call this country home.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceSo, I'm not interested in getting into a back and forth with Prime Minister Netanyahu. What I will say is that here in New York City, one of my top priorities is keeping Jewish New Yorkers safe — keeping every single New Yorker safe. And we know that while Jewish New Yorkers comprise a minority of all New Yorks, they comprise the majority of the victims of all hate crimes, and it is unacceptable. And I am thankful, as we have seen over the past few days, that the Asian New York and the Jewish New Yorker who were stabbed are in stable condition I continue to wish them a full and a speedy recovery and I'm also thankful to the NYPD for having acted quickly and swiftly to apprehend Raul Morales, who has now been charged as you said with not only attempted murder but also a hate crime, and I look forward to him being prosecuted to the full extent of the law, because as we know here in this city, we have no tolerance for hatred. We have not tolerance for bigotry. And I also want to make one thing clear, which is that we have to not only do the work in response to these kinds of crimes, but also to prevent these kinds of crimes. And that's why our administration made a decision to increase funding for the Office of Hate Crime Prevention by more than 800 percent earlier this year so we can start to do the work of rooting out antisemitism and bigotry of any kind from across the five boroughs.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceI've made my thoughts clear. I'll keep the conversation to the president between him and myself
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceSo, I will just echo what I shared earlier: I'll keep the conversations between the president and myself, between the president and myself. However, on the first question, our administration has been in touch with the family. I've also reached out to the family, and the family is going through something that no New Yorker should have to go through, and that is the kind of heartbreak of having to bury their son. And we are looking for every which way that we can be there for them in this time and also looking to ensure that there are no additional New Yorkers who ever have to experience a heartbreak like this. Again, we're speaking about a 12-year-old boy who was on his bicycle outside of a bodega and lost his life as a result of that, through no fault of his own. And I've also seen some commentary trying to blame Jacob for his presence outside of that bodega, and I think that is frankly unacceptable and it's distracting from the fact that gun violence is to blame for this, not a 12-year-old boy.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceSo, I will get back to you on your second question. What I will say to the first question is, one of the things that we understand within our administration is the critical importance of the position of the sheriff and finding someone who embodies the integrity that that position has to hold. And earlier I was being asked about Haitian New Yorkers. I'm incredibly excited that after this, I will be going to the inauguration of our new sheriff, who will also be the first Haitian American to serve in a position of leadership in law enforcement here in New York City.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceSo, I think, to your point, when I make criticisms of Prime Minister Netanyahu, they are criticisms of Prime Minister Netanyahu. And what I shared were not even frankly personal assessments, they were objective facts. And my responsibility as a New Yorker and as a mayor of this city is a responsibility to take care of each and every person who calls the city their home. And that is not based upon whether or not they agree with me, how they feel about me. My job is to make sure that they are safe, that they're thriving and [that] they continue to call this city home. That's always going to be my North Star on how we can do that because this is an incredible city and it's a city where everyone needs to know that they're belonging to it is not conditional on how they feel about the mayor.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the sourceI've said that all I have to say on that topic. Thanks everyone.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the source
Every passage above is taken from this recording: NYC Mayor's Office transcripts, Transcript: Mayor Mamdani Unveils 30% Discount — Including All Produce, All Meat and Key Pantry Staples — at New Municipal Grocery Stores.