Whole Foods Loses Hearing Request

Washington D.C. Whole Foods Market lost a bid on Friday for a larger panel of judges to review an appeals court decision that threw into question the legality of its already completed merger with Wild Oats.

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said in a brief order that it would not revisit its July decision, which revived the Federal Trade Commission's (FTCs) effort to block premium grocer Whole Foods' effort to buy Wild Oats.

A three-judge panel ruled on July 29 that a district court judge had erred when he refused to grant an FTC request for an injunction to block the $565 million deal.

The FTC tried to challenge the merger in 2007, but a federal district judge refused to issue a preliminary injunction stopping the merger. It was finalized in August 2007.