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Health

Eating 400 calories a day from these foods could raise dementia risk by over 20%

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Talk about food for thought.

A growing body of research suggests that ultra-processed foods like frozen pizzas and breakfast cereals high in sugars, fats and empty calories are bad for your health. Now, a new large-scale study presented at the 2022 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in San Diego this week offers more evidence that people who get a high percentage of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods are also at a higher risk of cognitive decline.

A team of researchers from the University of São Paulo Medical School in Brazil followed a diverse sample of more than 10,000 Brazilians for up to 10 years. The subjects filled out food frequency questionnaires to note how often they were eating foods including: unprocessed or minimally processed ingredients (aka whole foods like fresh, dry or frozen fruits, vegetables, whole grains, meat, fish and milk that underwent minimal processing, like pasteurization); processed foods (canned fruits, artisanal bread and cheese, and salted, smoked or cured meat or fish); and ultra-processed foods (industrial formulations of processed food substances like oils, fats, sugars, starch, artificial flavors and colorings, but containing little or no whole foods). 

The subjects also took cognitive tests up to three times a year, including memory tests and word recognition tests, to monitor their cognitive functioning; aka, mental abilities such as learning, thinking, reasoning, remembering, problem-solving, decision-making and attention. They also took regular verbal fluency tests to track their executive functioning; aka the mental skills that help an individual plan, monitor and successfully meet their goals. 

The findings? Those who ate 20% or more of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods had a 28% faster rate of cognitive decline, and a 25% faster rate of executive function decline, compared to the subjects in the study who ate the least amount of processed foods. In other words, someone following a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet who consumed 400 of their daily calories from ready-to-eat frozen meals, processed meats, breakfast cereals and sugar-sweetened beverages each day saw a faster rate of cognitive decline. 

Opinion: Your diet isn’t just making you obese, it could be speeding up cognitive decline

And many of us are fueling ourselves with these ultra-processed foods. The researchers noted that a whopping 58% of the calories consumed by U.S. citizens come from ultra-processed foods. We’re not alone; 56.8% of the calories consumed by British citizens, 48% of the calories consumed by Canadians, and up to 30% of the calories eaten by Brazilians also typically come from these ultra-processed foods, the researchers added. And despite the rise in plant-based alternatives (some of which are highly processed, themselves) and poultry consumption — and a dip in buying and eating unprocessed red meat — another recent report noted that Americans are still eating as much processed food as they did two decades ago, particularly deli meats, sausage, hot dogs, ham and bacon.

Related: Putting less sugar in packaged foods could prevent millions of Americans from getting sick — and save the U.S. over $160 billion

But there was an interesting catch in the cognitive decline study: If the overall quality of a subject’s diet was otherwise very high (meaning they ate a lot of unprocessed whole foods like fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins), then this association between ultra-processed foods and dementia disappeared. So the good news is, you can counter consuming these often cheap and easily-accessible ultra-processed foods by cooking more at home (which can also save you money) and preparing your food with whole foods like fresh or frozen produce, whole grains and lean meats and proteins. 

“Limiting ultra-processed food consumption, particularly in middle-aged adults, may be an efficient form to prevent cognitive decline,” the researchers wrote in their findings published in the journal JAMA Neurology this week. Indeed, this aligns with what health officials such as the American Heart Association have been saying: rather than calling out “good” or “bad” individual foods, folks should focus on eating an overall healthy diet that is high in fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean/high-fiber proteins that are minimally processed. 

Read more: No more ‘good’ vs. ‘bad’ foods: 10 healthy eating ‘patterns’ to prevent heart disease and death

But brain health isn’t the only concern when it comes to ultra-processed foods. Here are four other ways that these ready-made meals and snacks can hurt your health. 

Processed foods raise your risk of heart disease

An analysis of almost 30,000 people published in the JAMA Internal Medicine journal in 2020 suggested that eating two servings of red meat and processed meat each week – such as two hot dogs or four pieces of bacon – was “significantly associated” with heart disease.

“It’s worth trying to reduce [consumption of] red meat and processed meat like pepperoni, bologna and deli meats,” wrote senior study author Norrina Allen, associate professor of preventive medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Researchers from the University of Paris collected data on the diets and health of more than 105,000 people aged 18 and up over the course of five years for a 2019 report. They found that those who ate the most “ultra-processed” foods had a greater risk of heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular issues.

The American Heart Association also released a new scientific statement last year focusing on overall healthy eating habits to protect your ticker, which included choosing minimally-processed foods (such as a bag of salad or roasted, unsalted nuts) rather than ultra-processed foods (such as sugary cereal, potato chips or smoked sausage) as much as possible. The dietary guidelines also recommended limiting the consumption of food and beverages with added sugars. And it suggested choosing or preparing foods with little or no salt.

Processed foods increase cancer risk

People who had a 10% higher intake of ultra-processed foods saw more than a 10% increase in risk for cancers including breast cancer, according to a 2018 study published in the peer-reviewed British Medical Journal.

So when the American Cancer Society updated its diet recommendations to prevent cancer in 2020, cutting out processed foods was high on the list – along with curbing the consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks, red meat and alcoholic beverages. The American Cancer Society recommended piling your plate with a variety of whole, unprocessed foods and vegetables, instead; particularly dark green, red and orange veggies, as well as fiber-rich legumes like beans and peas. The guide also promoted whole grains, whole fruits in a variety of colors, and overall foods that are “high in nutrients in amounts that help achieve and maintain a healthy body weight.”

Processed foods lower life expectancy 

So considering the reports suggesting processed foods are associated with a host of chronic health conditions like cancer, heart disease and dementia – not to mention obesity, as those who follow an ultra-processed diet could consume up to 500 more calories per day compared with those who consume whole foods – it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that research has also found a link between eating these foods and early death.

Researchers at the University of Navarra in Pamplona, Spain documented the dietary habits of more than 20,000 Spanish college graduates between 1999 and 2014. They found that people who frequently consumed heavily processed foods (as in, more than four servings of each per day) had a 62% increased risk for early death compared to those who indulged in these foods less often.

And the 2020 study that noted eating two servings of red meat and processed meat each week was linked with heart disease also found that consuming these tasty but risky foods was also “significantly associated” with death. In fact, people who ate two servings of red meat or processed meat a week — but not poultry or fish — were linked with a 3% higher risk of all causes of death.

Processed foods hurt the planet – and come back around to bite you  

Favoring the growth and production of processed foods – which often rely on the same handful of staple ingredients such as sugar cane, corn, rice and wheat – has resulted in killing off more diverse plant offerings. This impacts agrobiodiversity—or the variety and variability of animals, plants and microorganisms used directly or indirectly for food and agriculture, which affects soil health and farming’s long-run profitable resilience, according to research published in BMJ Global Health earlier this year. What’s more, producing ultra-processed food uses large quantities of land, water, energy, herbicides and fertilizers, which hurts the environment by emitting greenhouse gas and creating tons of packaging waste.

Read more: Processed foods like ramen packets and frozen pizza can hurt your heart — and the globe, study says

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Business

Stocks Edge Higher Ahead of Fed Minutes

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U.S. stocks edged up ahead of the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent policy meeting, which will be combed for details on the path of coming interest-rate rises. 

After briefly opening lower, stock indexes turned green in early trading. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% after the broad-market index closed down 0.8% on Tuesday. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.4%, a reversal from a sharp selloff in tech stocks the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1%, or 26 points.

Stocks have had a volatile start to the week, buffeted by concerns about the Federal Reserve tightening monetary policy to combat the bout of high inflation and how sharp of a slowdown in growth it could cause. The S&P 500 is down nearly 18% from its last record high in January and briefly fell into bear-market territory last Friday before paring losses.

“It’s been really volatile, to say the least. This is linked to the question of recession, whether that’s coming or not. That’s effectively what the market has been pushing and pulling between,” said Fahad Kamal, chief investment officer at Kleinwort Hambros.  

Minutes from the Federal Reserve meeting earlier this month will be out at 2 p.m. ET and are expected to provide more signals for investors about the outlooks of policy makers on the economy and inflation. U.S. durable goods orders for April increased by 0.4%, a slower pace than economists expected.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was down to 2.73% from 2.758% on Tuesday. It has declined for four of the past five trading sessions. Yields fall when prices rise. 

“The market is pricing the slowdown that will eventually come from the Fed tightening. It also forecasts that inflation in 2023 will slow to much more reasonable levels,” said Antonio Cavarero, head of investments at Generali Insurance Asset Management. 

Government debt tends to perform well during times of slower economic growth, which has led to a stabilization in the bond market in recent days. 

When markets are turning downward, some investors try to make a profit by using a strategy known as buying the dip. WSJ’s Gunjan Banerji tells us why this approach is risky in today’s volatile market, even though it can be tempting. Illustration: Reshad Malekzai

Oil prices climbed with global benchmark Brent crude rising 0.6% to trade at $111.40 a barrel. The U.S. energy secretary said the Biden administration hasn’t ruled out a ban on oil exports to tame domestic fuel prices, Reuters reported.

In individual stocks,

Snap

shares added 2%. The Snapchat maker’s stock plunged 43% on Tuesday after it issued a profit warning, citing macroeconomic conditions that have deteriorated faster and further than expected. 

“Clearly there’s been a revaluation of tech valuations. It’s impossible to know how far it goes, but some of these are quality businesses and significantly cheaper than they have been trading recently,” Mr. Kamal said. “If you’re a long-term investor, that’s going to be something of interest.” 

Retailer Nordstrom climbed 2.4% after raising its guidance for full-year revenue growth. Home builder

Toll Brothers

rose 0.3% after reporting revenue and profit that beat analysts’ expectations. Apparel company

Express

jumped 11% after posting a narrower-than-expected loss and raising sales guidance.

Tech giant

Nvidia

and retailer

Williams-Sonoma

are scheduled to report earnings on Wednesday. 

The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite closed down about 2.4% on Tuesday.



Photo:

justin lane/Shutterstock

Overseas, the pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 edged up 0.3%. British online grocer

Ocado

fell 5.2% after cutting sales guidance for a joint venture due to rising prices changing consumer behavior. 

In Asia, major benchmarks were mixed. The Shanghai Composite Index added 1.2% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ticked up 0.3%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.3%. 

Write to Anna Hirtenstein at anna.hirtenstein@wsj.com

Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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Business

The Hidden Ways Companies Raise Prices

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Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises Inc., a Chicago-based restaurant group, has added a 3% “processing fee” to checks at many of its restaurants.

Harley-Davidson Inc.

added a charge last year to its motorcycles to cover rising material costs.

Peloton Interactive Inc.

in January began charging $250 for delivery and setup of some of its indoor bikes, a service that was previously included free.

Companies are finding all kinds of ways to make consumers pay for rising costs. Often that is not reflected in the posted price.

The Labor Department’s consumer-price index, which measures how much consumers pay for goods and services, rose to 7.5% in January compared with the same month a year earlier—the biggest rise since February 1982.

The index accounts for some changes that raise consumers’ costs, such as smaller package sizes and some fees attached to hotel packages or car purchases. But it can miss other ways in which dollars don’t stretch as far– a hotel that changes sheets only between guests, a theme park that cancels its free airport shuttle, or an auto dealer that requires customers to buy a protective paint coating with a car.

With supply-chain challenges, pent-up demand and a tight labor market leading to inflation, businesses are looking for subtle ways to pass along rising costs. Particularly in the food business, companies have long used what the industry calls weight-outs, or shrinking package contents instead of raising prices, during economic distress periods such as the 2007-2009 recession.

“There is a lot more to come,” said

Doug Baker,

head of industry relations for FMI, a food-industry trade organization. “Everything is on the table in an effort to deal with those cost increases, and at the same time, not make it too difficult for consumers to shop.”

A global computer-chip shortage has reduced vehicle inventories just as Americans were buying cars in record numbers, pushing up prices for new vehicles. In many cases, they are selling for thousands of dollars above manufacturers’ suggested retail prices, said Tom McParland, founder of Automatch Consulting, which helps consumers find vehicles.

“They’re calling it a market adjustment fee,” said Mr. McParland. “That’s the new thing they are doing: hiding markups with substantially overpriced accessories like mud flaps and cargo protectors.”

Ford Motor Co.

and

General Motors Co.

have said they are cracking down on dealerships using that tactic.

Harley fees

Base prices on Harley-Davidson’s motorcycles haven’t gone up much in recent years, the Milwaukee company said. But to cover rising costs, it added a mandatory materials surcharge last year, which dealers are passing on to customers. Dealers said the fee, which varies based on the model, is easier for the company to adjust than base motorcycle prices when costs decrease.

Dealers said the fee is $850 to $1,500 a bike. Harley this week told analysts that the surcharges helped boost revenue during the fourth quarter last year.

Harley-Davidson added a fee to its motorcycles to cover rising material costs; a dealership in Louisville, Ky., this week.



Photo:

Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg News

Some restaurants are adding new fees in response to escalating costs for food and packaging, and for wage increases executives say are needed to keep cooks and servers.

Brinker International Inc.’s

Maggiano’s Little Italy in October 2020 started charging $5 for a second, to-go pasta dish offered as part of a two-entree deal. For about a decade before the pandemic, the chain had offered a second classic pasta dish free.

“We’ve had no push back,” Maggiano’s president Steve Provost told investors last October. A Brinker spokeswoman said the price change allowed the company to invest more in the value of its carry-out offerings.

When Michael Pfeifer, a marketing professional, picked up the check for his meal at

RPM

Seafood in Chicago this week, he was surprised to find a 3% Covid surcharge added to the bill. “What’s next?” he said. “A dishware rental fee?”

The fee, added in the spring of 2020, offsets the cost of pandemic-related government regulations and mandates, said RJ Melman, president of Lettuce Entertain You, which owns RPM. “These fees can be removed and refunded for any guest that requests,” he said, “no questions asked.”

Peloton, according to its website, is adding the new $250 fees on bikes and a $350 delivery-and-setup fee for some of its treadmills. It cut the price of its original stationary bike in August to $1,495 from $1,895. With the added fees, the total price is now back up to about $1,745, as the company dealt with slowing demand and its own rising costs.

Peloton declined to comment on the fees. In an earnings call on Tuesday, Peloton CFO

Jill Woodworth

said that the fees could cut into consumer demand but that they were part of a “critical learning” process as the company restructures and cuts costs for the post-pandemic era.

Walt Disney Co.

’s Disney World in Orlando stopped offering free airport shuttles—known as the Magical Express—this year, leaving Disney guests to pay for their own transportation. The parks added several fees last year while keeping the base ticket price at $109. A fast-pass system that let park guests make reservations for rides, which used to be free, was discontinued and replaced by a new system that costs $15. And some popular rides, like Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Space Mountain, now cost between $7 and $15, on top of the park admission ticket.

Disney offers “a wide range of options to match different budgets and interests,” said Disney spokesman Avery Maehrer.

At its theme-park restaurants, Disney is trying to avoid across-the-board price increases, Disney CFO

Christine McCarthy

told analysts in November. “We can substitute products. We can cut portion size, which is probably good for some people’s waistlines,” she said. “But we aren’t going to go just straight across and increase prices.”

Consumer backlash

Consumer pressure has led some companies to back off added fees, including

Frontier Group Holdings Inc.

The airline, which uses a la carte pricing that lets frugal travelers choose to forgo amenities, in May 2021 added a $1.59-per-flight-segment Covid-related fee. After consumer backlash, Frontier in June stopped breaking it out as a component of its base fare but it didn’t stop charging it. Frontier didn’t respond to requests for comment.

In a press release it said: “The charge, which was included in the airline’s total promoted fare versus an add-on fee, was meant to provide transparency and delineate what portion of the fare was going toward COVID-related business recovery.”

Some of

Marriott International Inc.’s

Autograph Collection hotels had been charging a “sustainability fee” of about $5 a night. The company that manages the properties, Innkeeper Hospitality Services LLC, says it covered things like more-efficient HVAC systems.

They stopped charging the fee several weeks ago, “because we understand that while we believe in environmentally responsible stewardship, not everyone cares about our planet’s health,” IHS CEO Amrit Gill said. He said Marriott had asked the company to stop charging the fee. Marriott declined to comment.

The Biden administration has begun to look into some forms of hidden fees, which it calls “junk fees.” The administration says the amount being charged is not always tied to the costs faced by the company providing the goods or services. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking public input on financial services, such as bank overdraft fees, while the Transportation Department is planning actions on airline baggage fees.

John Fiorello, a father of four in Torrington, Conn., was dismayed to see prices rising in his local grocery-store aisles but was initially pleased to see that the blocks of cheese he usually buys hadn’t gone up much in price—perhaps 10 cents, he said. Then he noticed that the package had shrunk, to 12 ounces from 16.

“I picked up the block and said, ‘this is definitely smaller,’ ” Mr. Fiorello said. “It just adds an extra layer of stress.”

Shrinkflation, as economists call it, tends to be easier for companies to pass on to consumers. Despite labels that show price by weight, research shows that most customers look at only the overall price.

The food industry has long shrunk package contents instead of raising prices during economic-distress periods; a Salt Lake City grocery store in October.



Photo:

George Frey/Bloomberg News

“There are sizes that people remember, like a half gallon of ice cream,” said John Gourville, a Harvard Business School professor. “Once you break from iconic sizes, it’s pretty easy to move from 13 ounces to 12 ounces.”

Over the years, tuna cans have come to contain less tuna and toilet-paper rolls less tissue, said

Burt Flickinger III,

managing director of Strategic Resource Group, a consulting firm that works with consumer-product companies. “Historically,” he said, “it’s called a ‘cheater pack.’ ”

Companies have become more sophisticated and use multiple tactics to protect their profitability, he said. They can pull back on discounts, stop making low-selling products and create new varieties that sell for higher prices

Downsized Oreos

Oreo-maker Mondelez International Inc. raised prices by an average of 6% to 7% in the U.S. last month, but it wasn’t enough to make up for its higher costs, the company said. So Mondelez has been introducing new sizes and flavors it says are more profitable.

Oreo’s new 110th Birthday chocolate confetti-cake cookies cost about 10 cents more than regular Double Stuf Oreos at several grocery stores, even though the new flavor comes in a slightly smaller package. At a

Target Corp.

store in Chicago, the limited-edition birthday Oreos, which came out January, cost $3.79 for a 24-cookie package and the Double Stuf ones cost $3.69 for a 30-cookie package.

Retailers set the final prices. Mondelez said it charges the same for the two products, and its limited edition flavors are typically different-sized packages than regular ones. A Target spokesperson said: “We’re priced competitively throughout the markets we do business.”

Economists and analysts at the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics monitor prices of thousands of goods and services. They can account for shrinkflation, because they track the cost of certain products by weight and quantity—so a cereal box that costs the same amount but now has 30% less volume would be registered as a price increase.

They said their efforts can’t identify every fee or dropped amenity, such as a hotel room rate that remains the same but that no longer includes fresh towels or a hot breakfast. “We do not capture the decrease in service quality associated with cleaning a room every two days rather than one,” said Jonathan Church, a BLS economist.

Disney World in Florida added several fees last year while keeping the base ticket price at $109; the Magic Kingdom last summer.



Photo:

Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Associated Press

Jeremiah Mayfield and Carlos Larrea stayed at Alohilani Resort in Honolulu in December and opted for a $75 a-night upgrade to “club level” for free food and drinks. But they said they could rarely use it because the resort didn’t have enough staff to replenish the club-level amenities. After complaining, they were offered free dinner.

Alohilani General Manager Matthew Grauso said that quality and efficient guest service are top priorities and that he tries to remedy any shortfalls immediately, adding, “The pandemic has presented a unique set of challenges within the hospitality industry.”

“We gave them hell for it,” Mr. Mayfield said. “We paid $800 a night. We never expected it would be so scarce in terms of service and amenities.”

Many hotel chains are replacing complimentary hot breakfast buffets with a snack bag. Some fitness centers and pools remain closed, and housekeeping doesn’t refresh rooms daily. Some guests feel like they are getting less for their money.

InterContinental Hotels Group

PLC, which owns Holiday Inn, said it has been working with hotels to return amenities and make it right if guests aren’t satisfied. “Hotel teams have been overcoming many challenges including supply chain and labor shortages, changing health guidance and regulatory requirements,” an IHG spokesperson said.

On a recent trip to St. Louis, Meg Hinkley booked a Holiday Inn because it said online that it offered room service. When she arrived, the restaurant was closed, so there was no room service. She said she would have stayed at a lower-priced hotel if she had known. “I was paying for that convenience.”

—Heather Haddon and Bob Tita contributed to this article.

Write to Annie Gasparro at annie.gasparro@wsj.com and Gabriel T. Rubin at gabriel.rubin@wsj.com

Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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Business

U.S. Food Supply Is Under Pressure, From Plants to Store Shelves

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The U.S. food system is under renewed strain as Covid-19’s Omicron variant stretches workforces from processing plants to grocery stores, leaving gaps on supermarket shelves.

In Arizona, one in 10 processing plant and distribution workers at a major produce company were recently out sick. In Massachusetts, employee illnesses have slowed the flow of fish to supermarkets and restaurants. A grocery chain in the U.S. Southeast had to hire temporary workers after roughly one-third of employees at its distribution centers fell ill.

Food-industry executives and analysts warn that the situation could persist for weeks or months, even as the current wave of Covid-19 infections eases. Recent virus-related absences among workers have added to continuing supply and transportation disruptions, keeping some foods scarce.

Nearly two years ago, Covid-19 lockdowns drove a surge in grocery buying that cleared store shelves of products such as meat, baking ingredients and paper goods.

Now some executives say supply challenges are worse than ever. The lack of workers leaves a broader range of products in short supply, food-industry executives said, with availability sometimes changing daily.

The lack of workers is resulting in product shortages, leaving holes on supermarket shelves.



Photo:

frederic j. brown/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Eddie Quezada, produce manager at a Stop & Shop store in Northport, N.Y., said Omicron has stretched his department more than any previous wave of the pandemic, with one in five of his staff contracting Covid-19 in early January. Deliveries also have taken a hit, he said: Earlier in the month he received only 17 of the 48 cases of strawberries he had ordered.

“There is a domino effect in operations,” Mr. Quezada said.

At a Piggly Wiggly franchisee in Alabama and Georgia, about one-third of pickers needed to organize products and load trucks at the grocery chain’s distribution centers were out sick in the first week of January, said Keith Milligan, its controller. The company has been struggling to get food to stores on time due to driver shortages and staffing issues that haven’t improved, Mr. Milligan said, leaving Piggly Wiggly to change its ordering and stocking plans daily in some cases. Frozen vegetables and canned biscuits are running low, he said.

In-stock levels of food products at U.S. retailers hit 86% for the week ended Jan. 16, according to data from market-research firm IRI. That is lower than last summer and pre-pandemic levels of more than 90%. Sports drinks, frozen cookies and refrigerated dough are especially low, with in-stock levels in the 60% to 70% range. In-stock rates are lower in states such as Alaska and West Virginia, IRI data show.

“We were expecting supply issues to get resolved as we go into this period right now. Omicron has put a bit of a dent on that,”

Vivek Sankaran,

chief executive of Albertsons Cos., said on a Jan. 11 call with analysts. He said the Boise, Idaho-based supermarket giant expects more supply challenges over the next month or so.

Similar challenges at packaged-food and meatpacking plants mean that shortages could linger, industry officials and analysts said. The Agriculture Department showed cattle slaughter and beef production over the week of Jan. 14 were down about 5% from a year earlier, with hog slaughtering down 9%. Chicken processing was about 4% lower over the week ending Jan. 8, the USDA said. Labor shortages are also affecting milk processing and cheese production, according to the agency.

Because it often takes weeks for meat to reach store shelves from the plants, the current Omicron-related labor problems at producers could prolong supply issues, said

Christine McCracken,

executive director of meat research at agricultural lender Rabobank. “This might mean less meat for longer,” she said.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

What shortages have you noticed at the grocery store? Join the conversation below.

Lamb Weston Holdings Inc.,

the top North American seller of frozen potato products, said in January it expected labor challenges to continue affecting production rates and throughput in its plants, where staffing shortages have already disrupted operations.

Conagra Brands Inc.,

which makes Birds Eye frozen vegetables and Slim Jim meat snacks, said earlier this month that more of its employees have been testing positive for Covid-19 at a time when elevated consumer demand already is outpacing the company’s available supplies.

In Massachusetts, Tom Zaffiro is struggling to move fish to grocery stores and restaurants. Mr. Zaffiro, president of Channel Fish Processing Co., said the company is only able to run at 80% capacity on days when key workers are out, while short-handedness at trucking companies and breading suppliers make it still harder to prepare and transport the company’s fish. Channel has tripled lead times for customers, he said, and those that don’t meet a minimum order aren’t guaranteed supplies at all.

Vegetable suppliers in the West, which provide the bulk of America’s leafy greens during the winter, also face production challenges.

Steve Church, co-chairman at Church Brothers Farms, a California-based produce company, said some 10% of employees at his Arizona vegetable processing plant and distribution facility were out sick on any given day earlier this month. That number dropped last week, and Mr. Church said he still has been able to fill orders, but he worries about the toll the added work is taking on Church’s remaining employees, who are working overtime to keep fresh-cut vegetables and bagged salads moving to grocers and restaurants such as

Walmart Inc.

and

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.

“Those people are tired and they want days off,” said Mr. Church. “It’s a vicious circle.”

Channel Fish Processing is able to run at only 80% capacity on days when key workers are out.

Food companies and supermarket chains’ costs are rising as they struggle to operate with fewer employees. In Northport, Stop & Shop has offered unionized employees overtime pay to cover shifts for sick staff and asked part-time employees to work longer hours, said Mr. Quezada, the produce manager, adding that staffing and deliveries are improving in his department.

Stop & Shop said it is experiencing the impact of the latest increase in Covid-19 cases like other businesses across the country. The company said it doesn’t anticipate disruptions to customers’ shopping experience and that it has plans in place to continue operating.

Midwest-based Angelo Caputo’s Fresh Markets has been running low on frozen breakfast products, canned beans and other items, and has been buying whatever it can get to keep its shelves stocked, said Dan O’Neill, director of center store and perishables at the grocer.

“We are not seeing any kind of relief,” Mr. O’Neill said, adding that the company is trying to secure more inventory from alternative suppliers.

At Channel Fish Processing, labor shortages at trucking companies and breading suppliers have made it even harder to fulfill orders.

Brandon Johnson, president of Korth Transfer, a Wisconsin-based trucking company that hauls goods ranging from vinegar to beer, said the latest wave of Covid-19 cases has hit Korth’s employees nearly as hard as the pandemic’s earliest phase. Mr. Johnson said he has grown accustomed to telling customers he simply doesn’t have drivers left to move their loads.

Mr. Johnson said he spent about 20 days behind the wheel of his own trucks last year, including a 500-mile round-trip journey to ferry a load of soy sauce from its manufacturer to a condiment supplier for use in a teriyaki recipe.

“It makes it easy to say we’re tapped,” Mr. Johnson said, referring to his days spent filling in as a driver. “I can say, ‘I have no more to give. We’ve got everyone we can working for you.’”

—Patrick Thomas contributed to this article.

As the cost of groceries, clothing and electronics have gone up in the U.S., prices in Japan have stayed low. WSJ’s Peter Landers goes shopping in Tokyo to explain why steady prices, though good for your wallet, can be a sign of a slow-growing economy. Photo: Richard B. Levine/Zuma Press; Kim Kyung Hoon/Reuters

Write to Jesse Newman at jesse.newman@wsj.com and Jaewon Kang at jaewon.kang@wsj.com

Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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Business

Brace for a volatile 2022, but cling to this tech stalwart when the storm comes, says investment adviser

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The pain is piling up for equity investors after the long U.S. holiday weekend, with bond yields at levels not seen since early 2020, and oil prices tapping 2014 highs.

The pace of Federal Reserve monetary policy tightening amid the highest inflation in about 40 years, a bumpy start to the corporate earnings reporting season and pandemic uncertainties are just a few things on the worry list. Technology stocks
COMP,
-1.12%
are set to take the biggest hit on Tuesday, as a rapid rise in short term interest rates tends to make their future cash flows less valuable.

While a Deutsche Bank chart (below) reveals more tech-bubble worries, our call of the day makes a case for one of the biggest tech stalwarts, Apple
AAPL,
-0.43%,
saying the iPhone maker has an ace in the hole that few are paying attention to.

That call comes from investment adviser Wedgewood Partners, who kick off their fourth-quarter 2021 client letter with a warning about market volatility for 2022, triggered by central bankers who are about to usher in some market chaos by pulling the plug on years of cheap money. Even Chinese President Xi Jinping was heard warning the Fed not to hike interest rates at a virtual Davos on Tuesday.

However, the adviser also sees opportunities ahead as selling picks up speed, and they plan to stick to Apple, which they’ve owned for 16 years.

While Wedgewood said it couldn’t foresee the many products the company unveiled, “we did know that Apple’s vertically integrated [software and hardware] product development strategy was unique and extremely capable of creating products and experiences that customers thought worthwhile enough to spend growing amounts of time and money on,” said the adviser.

Today, that strategy remains intact, but more important Apple is commanding a key new realm, having developed over a dozen custom processors and integrated circuits, since launching its “A-series” processors. For example, one it produced in 2017 provided the iPhone X with enough power to operate FaceID 3-D algorithms, used to unlock phones and make digital payments.

“Apple has effectively created a semiconductor business that rivals and even surpasses some of the most established semiconductor-focused businesses in the industry,” said Wedgewood. “Apple continues to differentiate through vertical integration, which has been a hallmark of Apple’s long-term strategy to grow and capture superior profitability. It is difficult to predict what new products will be unveiled; however, we think this strategy should continue to serve
shareholders quite well.”

Other top positions recommended by Wedgewood include telecom group Motorola
MSI,
-1.73%,
another tech stalwart Microsoft
MSFT,
-0.23%
and retailer Tractor Supply
TSCO,
-1.14%.

Here’s a final comment from Wedgewood about the stock storm it sees brewing. “The graphic below reminds us that when speculation reigns, markets can go far higher than what seems sober,” but when they fall “markets will repeat their long history of falling faster and further than what seems sober.”


Wedgewood Partners

“Long term investors should root for such downside. Such times are opportunities to improve portfolios. Our pencils are sharpened for opportunities as Mr. Market serves them up.”

The markets

Microsoft shares are slipping after the tech group confirmed it will buy Activision Blizzard
ATVI,
+27.39%
in a $68.7 billion cash deal. The gaming group’s shares are flying, along with those of rival Electronics Arts
EA,
+6.72%.

Goldman Sachs
GS,
-7.72%
added to a disappointing batch of bank results from last week, with shares down as earnings came up short, with Charles Schwab
SCHW,
-4.29%
also falling on gloomy results. Kinder Morgan
KMI,
-0.14%
and Alcoa
AA,
-1.43%
are still to come.

Airbnb shares
ABNB,
-2.49%
are slumping after ratings and target cut from an analyst who sees multiple headwinds and too-few catalysts.

The New York Empire state manufacturing index for January fell well short of expectations. A National Association of Home Builders index for the same month is still ahead.

An unpublished study by an Israeli hospital showed second Pfizer
PFE,
-1.78%
-BioNTech
BNTX,
-7.77%
or Moderna
MRNA,
-4.70%
boosters aren’t halting omicron infections. Separately, Moderna’s CEO Stephane Bancel said his company is working on a combined flu/COVID booster, while White House chief medical advise Dr. Anthony Fauci, said it’s too soon to tell if omicron will bring us out of the pandemic.

Another study says COVID infections are turning children into fussy eaters due to parosmia disorders that distort their sense of smell. And China state media says packages from the U.S. and Canada had helped spread omicron, as Hong Kong gets ready to cull thousands of hamsters.

An airline lobby group is warning of “chaos” for U.S. air travelers due to 5G services rolling out this month, in a letter signed by big carriers, UPS
UPS,
-1.55%
and FedEx
FDX,
-1.39%.

Larry Fink, chairman and chief executive of BlackRock
BLK,
-1.72%
said investors need to know where company leaders stand on societal issues.

Retailer Walmart 
WMT,
-1.28%
is looking at creating its own cryptocurrency and nonfungible tokens, according to U.S. patent filings.

The markets

Uncredited

The Nasdaq Composite
COMP,
-1.12%
is sprinting ahead with losses, with the Dow
DJIA,
-1.43%
and S&P 500
SPX,
-1.24%
also lower Tuesday led by those for the Nasdaq-100
NQ00,
-1.28%
as bond yields
TMUBMUSD10Y,
1.848%

TMUBMUSD02Y,
1.034%
surge across the curve. Oil prices
BRN00,
+1.06%

CL00,
+1.56%
are surging after Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched a deadly drone attack on a key oil facility in Abu Dhabi. Goldman Sachs also predicted Brent could top $100 a barrel in 2023, while the OPEC left its 2022 global oil-demand forecast unchanged.

Losses spread to Asian
NIK,
-0.27%
and Europe stocks
SXXP,
-0.77%,
with a key German bund yields
TMBMKDE-10Y,
-0.012%
about to turn positive for the first time in three years.

The chart

A January survey of more than 500 investors polled by Deutsche Bank shows a slightly gloomier mood. For example, they are more bearish:


Uncredited

Many, especially those over 34, think tech shares are in a bubble:


Uncredited

And they continue to see inflation as the biggest risk to markets, but are also fretting a more aggressive Fed:


Uncredited

Here are the top stock tickers on MarketWatch as of 6 a.m. Eastern Time.

Ticker Security name
TSLA,
+1.47% 		Tesla
GME,
-5.61% 		GameStop
AMC,
-6.32% 		AMC Entertainment
BBIG,
+29.75% 		Vinco Ventures
NIO,
-0.71% 		NIO
AAPL,
-0.43% 		Apple
CENN,
-4.72% 		Cenntro Electric Group
NVDA,
-1.57% 		Nvidia
BABA,
-0.85% 		Alibaba
NVAX,
-4.04% 		Novavax
Random reads

Tulsa pastor apologizes for wiping his saliva on a man’s face during a sermon.

The high environmental cost of your beloved fish-oil pills.

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Business

Walmart, Kroger Raise Prices of Covid-19 Test Kits

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Prices are going up for some of the cheapest and most popular at-home Covid-19 test kits in the U.S.

Walmart Inc.

WMT -1.83%

and

Kroger Co.

KR 2.17%

are raising their prices for BinaxNOW at-home rapid tests, after the expiration of a deal with the White House to sell the test kits at cost for $14.

The two U.S. retail giants and

Amazon.com Inc.

agreed with the Biden administration last summer to discount the tests, which are made by

Abbott Laboratories

ABT -2.35%

and generally cost $24 or more for a box with two tests.

Abbott Laboratories’ FDA-approved BinaxNOW kit is among the most commonly used rapid Covid-19 antigen tests in the U.S.



Photo:

Paul Hennessy/Zuma Press

BinaxNOW, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is among the most commonly used over-the-counter, rapid antigen tests, which have been in high demand as the highly contagious Omicron variant spreads across the U.S.

The deal with the White House expired in December, and Walmart said this week that it is raising the kits’ price to $19.98 a box. Kroger now sells them for $23.99. The BinaxNOW tests aren’t currently available on Amazon.

Representatives for Walmart and Kroger said they fulfilled their commitment to sell tests at cost for three months and are taking steps to make tests more available. The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment.

An Amazon spokeswoman said the company is working with suppliers to alleviate shortages. She said Amazon made a large investment to develop its own FDA approved PCR test, which sells for $39.99, lower than most similar tests. The effort, she said, involved setting up an in-house laboratory to process results.

Pharmacy chains

CVS Health Corp.

and Walgreens Boots-Alliance Inc., along with other big retailers, have been selling the tests for $23.99 a box. Other retailers already are charging even more.

To help combat Omicron, the Biden administration is opening up more Covid testing sites and delivering 500 million Covid tests to Americans. WSJ’s Daniela Hernandez breaks down why testing is still a pain point in the U.S., two years into the pandemic. Photo Illustration: David Fang

Even at the higher prices, tests are difficult to find. BinaxNOW is sold out on many major retailers’ websites or takes more than a week to arrive. A Walmart spokeswoman said the BinaxNOW tests are more readily available in physical stores.

Abbott said it is running plants around the clock, seven days a week to pump out 70 million tests a month. “Despite rising U.S. material and labor costs, we have not passed along any of these costs to our customers and the price at retail has not changed since we launched the test,” the company said.

Covid-19 tests—both at-home kits and those done on location in clinics or at drugstores—remain costly and difficult to find in many places as the Omicron-driven surge pushes many Americans to seek out the diagnostic tools. The Biden administration has said it is working to expand access to free testing and has pledged to distribute 500 million free at-home tests. Some cities and states have established similar programs.

The White House said last month that it would begin delivering at-home tests in January and that they would be available to the public free by mail through a new website. Officials haven’t provided details of the plans to mail out tests or to cover the costs of testing.

Kroger now sells BinaxNOW Covid-19 test kits for $23.99 a box.



Photo:

Barrett Lawlis/Eagle-Gazette/USA TODAY NETWOR/Reuters

The cost and availability of tests varies widely. BinaxNOW tests are hard to find online for $24 but can be purchased for twice the price. At-home PCR tests are more readily available but generally cost close to $100 for a single test. Other rapid tests approved by the FDA for home use include the Ellume Covid-19 Home Test and the QuickVue test made by

Quidel.

Free testing is generally offered at medical and community clinics and at retail pharmacies. In places where demand for testing is especially high, people face hours-long lines or scarce appointment slots. How much people pay for in-person tests varies based on a number of factors including whether a person is insured, if they are symptomatic and how quickly they want results.

“When the prices are that high, people will rationalize not using a kit. They’ll wait until they’re sick or need it for school or something,” said Eric Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist and health economist and a senior fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Federation of American Scientists. “The problem with this pricing, besides creating a lack of access, is that it creates a perverse incentive for people not to use them.”

The tests need to be free or cost closer to $1, as is the case in much of Europe, to be an effective tool, Dr. Feigl-Ding said. That is because people who have few or no symptoms can still spread the virus.

Write to Sharon Terlep at sharon.terlep@wsj.com

Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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Business

Kroger to End Some Covid-19 Benefits for Unvaccinated Workers

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Kroger Co.

KR -0.03%

is eliminating some Covid-19 benefits for unvaccinated employees, a move to encourage inoculations as the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate faces legal challenges.

The Cincinnati-based grocery chain told employees last week that it will no longer provide two weeks of paid emergency leave for unvaccinated employees who contract Covid-19, unless local jurisdictions require otherwise. Kroger will also add a $50 monthly surcharge to company health plans for unvaccinated managers and other nonunion employees, according to a memo viewed by The Wall Street Journal. Both policies are effective Jan. 1, the memo said.

Kroger, one of the biggest employers in the U.S. with almost half a million full-time and part-time employees, is tightening pandemic-related policies for workers as U.S. businesses face continued uncertainty over federal vaccination mandates. Rules issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in November require employers with 100 or more workers to ensure employees are vaccinated or take weekly Covid-19 tests by Jan. 4.

Whether those rules, which were targeted by lawsuits across the country, will take effect is uncertain. Last week, a U.S. court blocked the plan to mandate vaccines for federal contractors.

General Electric Co.

and others have since suspended vaccine requirements for employees. A federal appeals court in Cincinnati is considering whether to reinstate the administration’s rules for employers.

Kroger’s monthly surcharge applies to salaried employees, and doesn’t apply to hourly employees enrolled in the company’s health plan, or those represented by labor unions. About 66% of its workforce is unionized.

Kroger joins an increasing number of employers adding surcharges for unvaccinated employees.

Delta Air Lines Inc.

in August added a $200 monthly surcharge to its healthcare plan to alleviate the financial burden stemming from the pandemic. The carrier said it saw early signs of success, with the number of employees receiving their first Covid-19 shot tripling from the typical daily rate.

The board of Nevada Public Employees’ Benefits Program voted this month to add surcharges for state employees, retirees and their dependents who are unvaccinated. Employees and retirees under the state’s health plan are subject to a $55 monthly surcharge, under policies set to go into effect in July, and dependents are subject to a $175 monthly surcharge. More than 4,000 out of 23,000 state employees remain unvaccinated, said Laura Rich, executive officer of the state’s public employees benefits program.

The program’s board decided that the financial costs of tests and hospitalizations should be shifted to people who refuse to be vaccinated, Ms. Rich said, adding that the board views the surcharge to be the only method available to encourage vaccinations.

Supermarkets rely on hundreds of thousands of front-line workers, but most haven’t enforced a vaccine or test mandate or changed their policies. Industry executives have said they are hesitant about making big changes, fearing workers may quit if required to get vaccinated or tested weekly. They have also said costs continue to rise for labor and transportation.

A Kroger spokeswoman said the company is modifying policies to encourage safe behaviors as it prepares to navigate the next phase of the pandemic, and that the changes are designed to create a healthier workplace and workforce. She said the company considered feedback from employees and customers to guide its policies, and that Kroger will continue to encourage sick employees to stay home and seek the support of a physician if they contract the coronavirus. Unvaccinated employees can take paid time off or apply for unpaid leave, she said. Kroger has been motivating staffers to get vaccinated with a $100 payment.

Kroger’s Covid-19 policy changes don’t apply to employees with approved medical or religious accommodations, according to the memo. The company said in the memo that it continues to prepare and develop responses to OSHA’s Covid-19 vaccine requirement.

Speakers at the WSJ CEO Council Summit weigh to what extent the government should be able to require Covid-19 vaccinations.

Taking away paid Covid-19 sick leave is risky because many hourly wage workers likely don’t have the savings to stay at home, said

Molly Kinder,

a fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, which describes itself as nonpartisan. She said infected employees who needed income could go to work and endanger other employees and customers.

“We are almost two years into the pandemic, but we are not out of the woods,” Ms. Kinder said, given the spread of the Omicron variant.

The retail industry has faced monthslong labor shortages. Some store workers have quit because they switched industries or were worried about spreading or contracting Covid-19 in public settings, industry executives have said. Others have stayed out of the job market because of child-care duties or savings they accumulated during the pandemic.

Many grocery chains have been offering payments to encourage vaccinations. Companies have also kept plastic barriers at cash registers, are encouraging social distancing, and are sanitizing stores more frequently than they did before the pandemic. Most have ended hazard pay for workers in stores and warehouses. Mask policies for employees remain across many supermarket chains, though some stores have struggled to manage customers who show up without face coverings or refuse to wear them properly.

Adding a surcharge can be an effective way to encourage vaccinations because people are risk-averse when facing losses, said Helen Leis, a partner at consulting firm Oliver Wyman Inc. who advises companies on pandemic responses. At the same time, she said, the penalty has to be large enough to get employees’ attention.

“Folks who are choosing not to be vaccinated are very dedicated to their decisions,” Ms. Leis said.

Write to Jaewon Kang at jaewon.kang@wsj.com

Copyright ©2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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US

Jan. 6 Rally Funded by Top Trump Donor, Helped by Alex Jones, Organizers Say

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The rally in Washington’s Ellipse that preceded the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol was arranged and funded by a small group including a top Trump campaign fundraiser and donor facilitated by far-right show host

Alex Jones.

Mr. Jones personally pledged more than $50,000 in seed money for a planned Jan. 6 event in exchange for a guaranteed “top speaking slot of his choice,” according to a funding document outlining a deal between his company and an early organizer for the event.

Mr. Jones also helped arrange for

Julie Jenkins Fancelli,

a prominent donor to the Trump campaign and heiress to the Publix Super Markets Inc. chain, to commit about $300,000 through a top fundraising official for former President

Donald Trump’s

2020 campaign, according to organizers. Her money paid for the lion’s share of the roughly $500,000 rally at the Ellipse where Mr. Trump spoke.

Another far-right activist and leader of the “Stop the Steal” movement,

Ali Alexander,

helped coordinate planning with

Caroline Wren,

a fundraising official who was paid by the Trump campaign for much of 2020 and who was tapped by Ms. Fancelli to organize and fund an event on her behalf, organizers said. On social media, Mr. Alexander had targeted Jan. 6 as a key date for supporters to gather in Washington to contest the 2020-election certification results. The week of the rally, he tweeted a flyer for the event saying: “DC becomes FORT TRUMP starting tomorrow on my orders!”

Alex Jones addressed protesters on the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6.



Photo:

Jon Cherry/Getty Images

The Ellipse rally, at which President Trump urged supporters to march to the U.S. Capitol, was lawful and nonviolent. But it served as a jumping-off point for many supporters to head to the Capitol. Mr. Trump has been impeached by the Democrat-led House of Representatives, accused of inciting a mob to storm the Capitol with remarks urging supporters to “fight like hell.”

Few details about the funding and organization of the Ellipse event have previously been revealed. Mr. Jones claimed in a video that he paid for a portion of the event but didn’t offer details.

Messrs. Jones and Alexander had been active in the weeks before the event, calling on supporters to oppose the election results and go to the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Mr. Alexander, for instance, tweeted on Dec. 30 about the scheduled Jan. 6 count for lawmakers to certify the Electoral College vote at the Capitol, writing: “If they do this, everyone can guess what me and 500,000 others will do to that building.”

Julie Jenkins Fancelli, shown in 2019, donated more than $980,000 in the 2020 election cycle to a joint account for the Trump campaign and Republican Party, records show.



Photo:

Barry Friedman/LKLND NOW

A hodgepodge of different pro-Trump groups were planning various events on Jan. 6. Several of them, led by the pro-Trump Women for America First, helped coordinate the Ellipse event; another group splintered off to lead a rally the night before, at which Mr. Jones ended up speaking, and the group organized by Mr. Alexander planned a protest outside the Capitol building.

Mr. Jones, who has publicized discredited conspiracy theories, has hosted leaders of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, two extremist groups prominent at the riot, on his popular radio and internet video shows.

Mr. Jones declined to respond to requests for comment. In a statement, Mr. Alexander said Stop the Steal’s motto is “peaceful but rowdy,” that the violence at the Capitol wasn’t planned by his group and said none of his rhetoric incited violence. Messrs. Alexander and Jones said on Mr. Jones’s show that they tried to prevent protesters from entering the Capitol and sought to de-escalate the riot. Neither has been accused of wrongdoing.

A spokesman for the Trump campaign said it had no role in financing or organizing the Ellipse event and didn’t direct former staffers to do so. A spokeswoman for Mr. Trump declined to comment. At least five former Trump campaign staffers besides Ms. Wren assisted on the logistics of the Jan. 6 rally, according to the permit and Federal Election Commission records.

Ali Alexander, activist and leader of the ‘Stop the Steal’ movement, helped coordinate planning of the Ellipse rally.



Photo:

carlos barria/Reuters

Starting in mid-December, Mr. Alexander began publicizing plans “to march and peacefully occupy DC with #StopTheSteal,” according to organizers and a message saved by

Devin Burghart,

who directs an organization that tracks extremist groups. Mr. Trump on Dec. 19 urged supporters through Twitter to come for Jan. 6 protests that he said would be “wild.”

Mr. Alexander created a website called WildProtest.com, writing: “We the People must take to the US Capitol lawn and steps and tell Congress #DoNotCertify on #JAN6!” He planned and publicized a rally to take place on the Capitol grounds that day. The website was taken offline after the riot.

A representative of Women for America First had applied for a permit to host a separate rally just after the inauguration in January, but the group rescheduled for Jan. 6 after the Dec. 19 Trump tweet, organizers said.

Women for America First’s permit for the Ellipse rally listed several names and positions, including Ms. Wren as “VIP coordinator.” In the 2020 election cycle, the Trump campaign and a joint GOP committee paid Ms. Wren and her fundraising consulting firm $730,000, according to FEC records.

The Ellipse rally, during which Donald Trump spoke, was lawful and nonviolent, but it served as a jumping-off point for his supporters to head to the Capitol.



Photo:

Shawn Thew/Bloomberg News

Ms. Wren had been tapped to handle funding by Ms. Fancelli, the major donor to the Ellipse event, according to organizers. Ms. Fancelli, who didn’t respond to several requests for comment, donated more than $980,000 in the 2020 election cycle to a joint account for the Trump campaign and Republican Party, records show.

Ms. Fancelli, daughter of the Publix Super Markets founder, contacted Mr. Jones and offered to contribute to a Jan. 6 event, organizers said. Mr. Jones connected her to an organizer through Ms. Wren, who handled the funding as she helped coordinate the logistics of a rally with Women for America First. A Publix spokeswoman said Ms. Fancelli isn’t involved in the company’s business operations and doesn’t “represent the company in any way.”

The Ellipse setup cost roughly $500,000, with a concert stage, a $100,000 grass covering and thousands of feet of security structures.

Ms. Wren played a central role in bringing together the disparate group of activists planning events on Jan. 6. She suggested to Mr. Alexander that he reschedule his Capitol rally to 1 p.m. and put into place a list of about 30 potential speakers, including Messrs. Alexander and Jones, who had been listed on websites as associated with the day’s events, according to organizers.

In a statement, Ms. Wren said her role for the event “was to assist many others in providing and arranging for a professionally produced event at the Ellipse.”

The involvement of Messrs. Jones and Alexander triggered debate among the organizers.

Amy Kremer,

chairwoman of Women for America First, said in a statement: “We were concerned because there was an aggressive push to have fringe participation in our event.”

In text messages Ms. Wren sent to another organizer and reviewed by the Journal, Ms. Wren defended Mr. Jones. “I promise he’s actually WAY nicer than he comes off…I’m hoping you’ll [sic] can become besties,” Ms. Wren wrote.

Ms. Wren’s spokesman said the message is “evidence of Ms. Wren assisting in executing an event while also having to diplomatically get people with different agendas on the same page.”

None of the groups obtained a march permit, though Women for America First called the event “March to Save America Rally” and Mr. Alexander’s Stop the Steal promoted a march to the Capitol online.

The Women for America First Ellipse permit said the group wouldn’t conduct a march but noted: “Some participants may leave to attend rallies at the United States Capitol to hear the results of Congressional certification of the Electoral College count.”

Kylie Kremer,

co-founder of Women for America First, said the group didn’t file for a march permit because it went against Covid-19 guidelines and a march wasn’t in its plans.

When Mr. Trump met on Jan. 4 with former campaign adviser

Katrina Pierson,

who had begun working with rally organizers, he said he wanted to be joined primarily by lawmakers assisting his efforts to block electoral votes from being counted and members of his own family, aides said.

Messrs. Alexander and Jones spoke instead at a Jan. 5 rally organized by the Eighty Percent Coalition, a group founded by

Cindy Chafian,

an early organizer of the Jan. 6 event who struck the initial deal with Mr. Jones.

She said she was willing to work with Mr. Jones because “it’s unreasonable to expect to agree with everything a group or person does.”

Mr. Jones’s seed money in the end was used for that Jan. 5 rally, for which he ultimately paid about $96,000, an organizer said. In his speech at that event, Mr. Jones said: “I don’t know how all this is going to end but if they want to fight, they better believe they’ve got one.”

The next day, Ms. Wren personally escorted Mr. Jones and Mr. Alexander off the Ellipse grounds before the two men marched to the U.S. Capitol, according to organizers. She had provided them and many others VIP passes that morning for Mr. Trump’s speech.

Messrs. Alexander and Jones were at the Capitol grounds together on Jan. 6, and Mr. Jones supported protesters with a bullhorn, video footage shows. He urged them to be peaceful and proceed to the area on the Capitol grounds where Mr. Alexander had secured a demonstration permit, according to Mr. Alexander and the footage.

Write to Shalini Ramachandran at shalini.ramachandran@wsj.com, Alexandra Berzon at alexandra.berzon@wsj.com and Rebecca Ballhaus at Rebecca.Ballhaus@wsj.com

Copyright ©2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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