The UK's Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) has named Tesco, Morrisons, Asda and the Co-operative as the retailers that showed the most improvement in terms of grocery code compliance in the past year.
The GCA announced the findings at its annual conference in London, which featured the theme 'Strong Progress; Fresh Challenges'.
Adjudicator Christine Tacon said that the 2018 results tell "a very positive story and it is no coincidence that the four most-improved retailers this year have each faced increased GCA scrutiny and heightened levels of GCA engagement through investigations and case studies."
Tacon noted that in each successive GCA survey, suppliers have scored retailers’ compliance with the Code. In 2014, the percentage reported as complying ‘consistently well’ or ‘mostly’ ranged from 58 to 90%. This year, the range is 84% to 97%, with only two retailers scoring less than 90%.
“The 2018 survey is proof that my collaborative, business-focused approach gets results," she added.
Code-Related Issues
This year, four out of ten suppliers reported having experienced a Code-related issue – down from a high of eight out of ten in 2014, and from around 56% in 2017.
The highest-ranking 'top issue', cited by 19% of suppliers, was delay in payments.
“The results of the survey together with information I have received from suppliers and trade associations mean there is no pressing candidate for inclusion as a current top issue," said Tacon.
"But this doesn’t mean my job is done – far from it. I know there are fresh challenges waiting for me."
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
