It looks like Amazon’s (NASDAQ:$AMZN) plans to acquire Whole Foods (NASDAQ:$WFM) is well underway. On Wednesday, August 23rd, the United States’ Federal Trade Commission (FTC) gave its approval to the merger after reviewing the deal. The FTC’s role is to ensure that Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods does not give the companies unfair advantages or dramatically hinder its competitors. Basically, the FTC makes sure that there is no foul play involved kinds of deal – either between two merging companies or the companies’ competitions. Bigger-than-average mergers – like the one that Amazon has begun with Whole Foods – are typically subjected to investigations/reviews by either the FTC and/or the Justice Department. The reviews are given based on which agency is more familiar with the industry of the deals.

“Based on our investigation we have decided not to pursue this matter further,” Bruce Hoffman, director of FTC’s Bureau of Competition, said. “Of course, the FTC always has the ability to investigate anti-competitive conduct should such action be warranted.”

FTC approval of the deal came on the same day that Whole Foods’ shareholders gave their majority approval to the Amazon-Whole Foods deal. As a result, Whole Foods’ shares spiked during after-hours trading on Wednesday and remained at a small gain the next day. As of 1 PM EDT on Thursday, August 24th, Whole Foods’ stock has increased by 0.71%. If all continues to go smoothly, both Amazon and Whole Foods expect the deal to be finalized and closed by the end of this year.

Amazon’s announcement of its plan to acquire Whole Foods earlier this year had caused quite a shake-up in the retail industry. Not only does the purchase show a much more ambitious side of Amazon, it also brought forth a wave of new worries to grocers in the retail industry. In order to compete with Amazon’s take-over, Wal-Mart (NYSE:$WMT) very recently announced a partnership with Google (NASDAQ:$GOOGL). Under the new partnership, Wal-Mart products will be made available through Google Express. Additionally, the two companies will be working on bringing voice-activated shopping to its consumers.

Meanwhile, besides its merger with Amazon, Whole Foods has been putting in effort to put more varied products onto its shelves. It’s also recently launched five of its spinoff stores known as Market 365. The goal of Market 365 is to attract younger shoppers with more affordable prices.

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