GCA annual survey open until end of March

19-Mar-2020 - Last updated on 19-Mar-2020 at 09:20 GMT

The annual survey is available for UK retailers until March 29. Pic: Getty Images/VLG

The Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) in the UK has launched the annual survey, ten years after the Groceries Supply Code of Practice (the Code) came into force.

The survey has played a role in helping the GCA achieve progress for suppliers, demonstrating where retailers’ efforts have improved Code compliance and identifying areas for them to make improvements. It is an opportunity for suppliers to tell the GCA what Code issues they are facing and whether the regulated retailers are treating them fairly and lawfully.

This year, the survey – the seventh carried out by GCA Christine Tacon - includes Home Bargains, which was designated by the Competition and Markets Authority in September last year. Suppliers can complete the survey at www.yougov.com/GCA.

Tacon said, “The annual survey is the best way for the GCA to understand what issues suppliers are experiencing with the retailers and it is a powerful indicator of the state of relations in the sector. The retailers themselves use the results to help them pinpoint the issues they need to work on.

“I have tracked retailer behavior through an annual survey since my first year in the role and seen continued progress. The 2019 survey results were the best ever with only four out of ten suppliers reporting having experienced a Code-related issue in the last twelve months - down from a high of eight out of ten in 2014 - but I am still pushing for further improvement. I would like to see if that trend has continued against a challenging retail background and since three additional retailers joined the original ten.

“Since my appointment as the UK’s first Groceries Code Adjudicator, I have seen great changes in the relationship between the major retailers I regulate and their direct suppliers. This is my last annual survey as the GCA and, as always, its value comes from the significant number of suppliers who take part. I need all sectors and sizes of groceries suppliers to complete my survey so please take the time to fill it in.”

The independent polling company YouGov runs the survey on behalf of the GCA so suppliers can be confident the information they provide is treated in confidence.

YouGov collects and analyzes the answers. The results will be announced by the GCA in its newsletter and online in June.

The survey closes on March 29.