Trump Eases Refrigerant Rule to Address Surging Grocery Costs
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday loosened federal regulations requiring grocery stores and air-conditioning companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cooling equipment, a move the administration says will help lower surging grocery costs as inflation hits a three-year high.
Speaking at a White House ceremony joined by executives from Kroger, Piggly Wiggly, and other grocery chains, Trump said the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) action would “substantially lower costs for consumers” by delaying costly restrictions that limit the type of refrigerants U.S. businesses and families can use, as AP News reported.
The Regulatory Change
The EPA, under Administrator Lee Zeldin, proposed extending compliance deadlines for the 2023 Technology Transitions Rule, which imposed steep restrictions on hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) — potent greenhouse gases thousands of times more powerful than carbon dioxide — in residential air conditioning, retail food refrigeration, cold storage warehouses, and semiconductor manufacturing. The EPA announced the proposed rule change in September 2025, but Thursday’s White House event marked the formal rollout.
Trump called the Biden-era regulation “unnecessary and costly” and claimed the EPA action would protect hundreds of thousands of jobs and save Americans more than $2 billion a year. However, it remains unclear how much or how quickly grocery prices could be impacted by the refrigerant rule change.
Economic Context
The move comes as U.S. inflation rose to 3.8% annually in April, driven by the Iran war — which sent gasoline prices up 28% year-over-year — and Trump’s sweeping tariffs. Grocery prices rose 0.7% from March to April alone, according to AP News. With pivotal November elections approaching and voter concerns over the cost of living dominating the political landscape, the administration is under pressure to address affordability.
Industry Divided
The rollback has exposed sharp divisions within the business community. Grocery chains and the Food Industry Association welcomed the change. Leslie Sarasin, the group’s president and CEO, said the earlier rule “imposed significant costs and unrealistic compliance requirements and timelines that threatened to drive up grocery prices.” Kroger CEO Greg Foran told Trump the EPA action ensures “an orderly transition” that keeps grocery prices down.
Kevin McDaniel, a Piggly Wiggly franchise owner who operates 14 stores across Florida, Alabama, and Georgia, said the Biden-era rule would have forced many independent grocers out of business. “It was thrown together too fast. The technology is not there yet,” he said.
But the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), which represents more than 330 HVAC manufacturers, warned the change would “inject uncertainty across the market” and could actually raise prices. Stephen Yurek, the group’s president and CEO, argued that extending compliance deadlines maintains demand for existing refrigerants while supply continues to fall under the AIM Act’s phasedown schedule, as The Guardian reported. Yurek noted that nearly 90% of residential and light commercial air conditioning systems already use substitute refrigerants, suggesting the transition was well underway.
A Policy Reversal
Thursday’s action marks a significant reversal for Trump, who signed the bipartisan American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act in December 2020, mandating an 85% phasedown of HFCs over 15 years. That law brought together environmental groups, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and major chemical manufacturers in rare alignment on climate policy. The AIM Act aligned the U.S. with the international Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which 197 countries have committed to.
Environmental Concerns
Environmental groups sharply criticized the rollback. David Doniger, a senior strategist at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), called Trump’s action “a lose-lose for the environment and the economy. It will harm consumers and the climate and reduce American competitiveness in the global markets emerging for environmentally safer refrigerants.”
The rollback is part of a broader deregulatory push by the second Trump administration. Zeldin has pursued sweeping environmental changes, including the repeal of the “endangerment finding” — the legal foundation for U.S. climate regulation — which is being challenged in court by two dozen states and 10 cities. Zeldin has described the administration’s environmental agenda as putting a “dagger through the heart of climate change religion,” as Fortune reported.
What’s Next
The proposed rule is open for a 45-day public comment period before finalization. Legal challenges from environmental groups and states are expected, given that the AIM Act mandates the HFC phasedown and the EPA’s authority to delay compliance deadlines may face scrutiny. Meanwhile, with 197 countries committed to the Kigali Amendment, U.S. companies that delay transitioning to alternative refrigerants risk losing export markets for refrigeration equipment.
For American consumers, the immediate impact remains uncertain. While the administration promises lower grocery prices, industry analysts caution that supply-demand mismatches in the refrigerant market could offset any savings. What is clear is that the debate over how to balance environmental regulation with economic affordability — and the political consequences of that balance — will only intensify as November approaches.