Groceries Code Adjudicator is looking to hear about suppliers’ relationships with supermarkets
Supermarket suppliers are being urged to feed back to the Groceries Code Adjudicator’s (GCA) annual survey over their treatment by customers.
The GCA’s 2026 groceries sector survey, which is open now and until 22 February, enables suppliers to confidentially tell the GCA how the 14 designated retailers are working with them.
Suppliers’ views from the survey help the GCA to understand the retailers’ behaviour and to take action to ensure they are complying with the Groceries Code (GSCOP).
Adjudicator Mark White called on suppliers to complete the survey: “The annual survey is your chance to tell me in confidence how the retailers are behaving,” he said. “I want to hear from you. I will act on the issues that you raise, making sure that the retailers take action where necessary to treat their suppliers fairly and lawfully.”
Improvements in compliance
The 2025 survey showed improvements in perceived code compliance across the retailers for the second year running.
The number of suppliers reporting that they faced a code issue fell from 33 per cent in 2024 to 30 per cent in 2025, while average code compliance across the retailers rose.
For the first time, over 90 per cent of suppliers to 13 retailers reported that the retailer consistently or mostly complied with the code. There were also improvements in issues prioritised by the GCA including delays in payments and the resolution of invoice discrepancies.
The results of the 2026 survey will show whether these trends have continued and inform future priorities for the GCA, White said. The GCA will publish the results in spring 2026.
YouGov will then also conduct interviews with a group of respondents to explore participants’ views in more detail, with the findings of the interviews being shared at the GCA’s 2026 annual conference.
