Deflation and the weak economy took its toll on North American food distributors in 2009, as total volume for the Top 75 food retailers and wholesalers fell about 0.2% compared with a year ago. Total revenues for the group, which includes sales of both food and nonfood merchandise in North America, were $891.4 billion, compared with $893.08 billion in 2008. The 10 largest companies on the Top 75 list saw revenues slide 1.2% in 2009, to $606 billion, compared with a year ago. Most of the companies in the top 10 — which together comprised 68% of the total revenues of the Top 75 — saw slight sales declines during the year. Among the top 20, dollar volume was down about 0.8% for 2009, to $727 billion. Their revenues accounted for 81.6% of the total volume for the Top 75 — slightly less than their share from a year ago.

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