Kroger is reportedly planning to recruit Greg Foran, the former CEO of Walmart US, as its new chief executive.

The Wall Street Journal first broke the news, citing people with knowledge of the matter. It added that the grocery giant would announce the decision early this week.

Foran, a native New Zealander, was the CEO of Walmart’s US division between 2014 and 2019, during which he oversaw a turnaround of the business.

Following his time at the grocer, he became CEO of Air New Zealand until last October. 

Kroger’s previous CEO Rodney McMullen resigned last March, following an investigation of his personal conduct that was found to be “inconsistent with the company’s ethics policy”.

The board then appointed lead director Ronald Sargent as chairman and interim CEO, and has been searching for a new permanent CEO since.

The company has also appointed several new leaders, including Joe Kelley as senior VP of its retail divisions, Chris Alby as president of the Kings Super division, and Kendra Doyel as president of the California and Illinois-based Food 4 Less.

Last month, the retailer sold its online health and wellness retail business, Vitacost.com, as part of a strategic review of its non-core assets.

The company has also cut approximately 1000 corporate jobs and closed underperforming stores and e-commerce fulfilment centers over the past year. 

For the third fiscal quarter, Kroger saw a modest 0.7 per cent increase in sales.