Groceries Code Adjudicator
The Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) has today (16 January 2023) launched its tenth annual groceries sector survey and wants to hear from as many suppliers as possible about how they have been treated by the 14 large retailers.
The survey, run by the independent polling company YouGov, is one of most important ways for suppliers to confidentially tell the Adjudicator, Mark White about their experiences dealing with the retailers. The survey covers a wide range of themes and the responses will help Mark White understand the ongoing impact of inflation and other issues affecting suppliers.
In 2022, more than 2,500 respondents helped the GCA understand supplier concerns, including about how retailers had responded to cost price increases (CPIs), which was the most raised issue in the last five years. Perceived Code-compliance also fell compared to the previous survey. Responses to the 2023 survey will show whether suppliers believe retailers have improved or whether compliance has worsened again during tough trading conditions.
Amazon.com, Inc. was designated as a retailer in March 2022, so this is also the first opportunity for their suppliers to provide feedback on the retailers performance through the survey.
Mark White, Groceries Code Adjudicator said:
Since my last survey, inflation has continued to affect the entire groceries sector, straining the relationships between retailers and suppliers. I am concerned about how the retailers are responding to CPI requests and whether this pressure is causing other issues to arise.
I want to hear from as many suppliers as possible so I can understand the ongoing impact of inflation and other issues affecting suppliers. This will help me to work with the retailers to ensure they are treating all suppliers fairly and legally.
The 2022 Survey
More than a quarter of the direct suppliers who responded to the 2022 survey said they had experienced a request for a CPI being refused or the implementation being unreasonably delayed. It was the most raised issue in the last five GCA surveys.
Suppliers highlighted other issues including around de-listing (16% of suppliers), forecasting errors (18%) and delays in payments (12%).
The number of Code-related issues rose, with only 47% of suppliers facing no Code-issues compared to 56% in 2021. Across the nine surveys run by the GCA this was the first time that Code-related issues had risen.
Next steps
The survey is open for six weeks, closing on 26 February with the results published later in 2023. The GCA has commissioned YouGov to conduct anonymous follow-up interviews with a select group of respondents to explore supplier concerns in more detail. Suppliers will be able to sign up to these interviews at the end of the survey.
If you have any questions about the survey, please get in touch by email at enquiries@