Selling a food brand to UK supermarkets: what grocery buyers ask for

Each UK retailer organizes buying by category. A buyer owns a category, or part of one, and decides which lines it carries. Shelf space is fixed, so a new line usually has to replace an existing one, and the buyer has to justify the change with data.

The largest grocery retailers deal with their direct suppliers under the Groceries Supply Code of Practice (GSCOP), enforced by the Groceries Code Adjudicator. The Competition and Markets Authority designates the retailers it covers based on their UK grocery turnover. The designated retailers currently include Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl, Co-op, Waitrose, Marks and Spencer, Iceland, Ocado Retail, Amazon, B&M and Home Bargains. Beyond them sit convenience groups, department-store food halls, specialty and independent retailers, wholesalers and online grocers, each with its own buying process.

A range review, or category review, is when a retailer reassesses a whole category: which lines stay, which go, which new lines come in, how much space each gets and how the shelf is laid out. Most new listings, and most delistings, happen at a range review.

Each retailer sets its own review timetable, category by category, and the time between the buyer's decision and stock on shelf can be months, because planograms, depot stock and launch dates are planned in advance. Ask the buyer, or a distributor that already supplies the category, when the next review is, and work backward from that date. Arriving after the range has been decided usually means waiting for the next one.

GSCOP also covers the other end. A designated retailer may delist a supplier only for genuine commercial reasons. Before it does, it must give reasonable notice with written reasons, and tell the supplier of its right to have the decision reviewed by a senior buyer.

Buyers want to know why your product deserves space over what is already there. Expect to answer:

• The category case: where the category is growing, who buys it and what gap your product fills
• Incrementality: whether it brings new shoppers or spend into the category, or just moves sales from existing lines
• What it replaces: which line you would take space from, and why the category is better for it
• Price and margin: the recommended retail price, the retailer's margin and how the price sits against the category
• Promotional plan: the events you will fund in the first year, and how they fit the retailer's calendar and any HFSS rules
• Marketing support: sampling, in-store activity, retail media and digital plans
• Supply: lead times, minimum orders, capacity, shelf life on delivery and how stock reaches the depots
• Technical: specifications, certification, label artwork and the UK address on pack

Prepacked food sold in the UK must carry the mandatory information set by the food information rules: Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on food information to consumers (FIC) as it applies in the UK, and the Food Information Regulations 2014 (FIR) in England, with equivalent regulations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This includes:

• the name of the food
• a list of ingredients, including allergens
• a quantitative ingredients declaration (QUID) where an ingredient is named in the product name, emphasized on the pack or essential to characterize the food
• the weight or volume of the food
• a "best before" or "use by" date
• the name and address of the food business operator (FBO)
• a nutrition declaration, compulsory on most prepacked foods since December 2016
• the country of origin or place of provenance where leaving it out could mislead the consumer, and for certain foods such as many meats, honey and olive oil

The UK address on pack. Since January 1, 2024, prepacked food sold in Great Britain must show a UK address for the FBO. If the FBO is not in the UK, the label must show the address of the UK importer. It must be a physical address where the business can be contacted by mail; an email address or phone number is not enough. Food sold in Northern Ireland needs a Northern Ireland or EU address instead. For a European brand, this is one reason the choice of UK importer affects the artwork.

Allergens. The UK list has 14 allergens, including celery, mustard, lupin, mollusks and sulfites above set levels, so it is longer than the US list. Allergenic ingredients must be emphasized every time they appear in the ingredient list, for example in bold, in a contrasting color or underlined. The Food Standards Agency says "may contain" statements should be used only after a thorough risk assessment, where the risk of cross-contamination is real and can't be removed.

Warnings. Some ingredients trigger mandatory statements, such as "with sweetener(s)", or a high caffeine warning on drinks with more than 150 mg of caffeine per liter unless "tea" or "coffee" is in the name, which matters for functional beverages.

Multilingual packs. Mandatory information must be in English. It can be on the packaging or on a label firmly attached to it, so a multilingual European pack with a UK over-label can work. Either way, it must be clear, easy to read, permanent, easily visible and must not mislead.

Claims and HFSS. Nutrition and health claims follow their own rules in Great Britain, so check each one before printing. In England, regulations also restrict where less healthy (HFSS) products in certain categories can be placed in larger stores and online, such as store entrances, aisle ends and checkouts, and restrict volume-price promotions such as multibuys. They apply to businesses with 50 or more employees, and products are assessed with the nutrient profiling model, so expect buyers in affected categories to ask for your product's score.

For most retailers, yes. UK retailers identify products by Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs), the numbers under EAN or UPC barcodes. GS1 is the only authorized source of GTINs worldwide, and GS1 numbers are accepted by retailers and marketplaces across the world, so GTINs your company already has from GS1 in its home country can be used for the UK. GTINs identify products at any packaging level: plan numbers and barcodes for consumer units and for the outer cases that retailer depots handle.

UK buyers want independent evidence that the product is made safely, and the certificate they expect depends on the retailer and the size of the supplier.

• BRCGS Food Safety. A standard recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), which BRCGS says is recognized by retailers and brands around the world. For manufacturers supplying large UK grocery retailers, a GFSI-recognized certificate such as BRCGS Food Safety is usually expected. Some retailers accept other GFSI-recognized schemes, such as IFS or FSSC 22000, so confirm with the retailer's technical team.
• SALSA. Safe and Local Supplier Approval is a UK food safety certification scheme for small food and drink producers, set up to connect national and regional buyers with local and regional suppliers. It can suit smaller producers selling to regional and specialty buyers. Check that your site is eligible and that the buyer accepts SALSA before planning around it.
• Retailer technical requirements. Large retailers also have their own specifications, supplier portals and sometimes site audits. Allow time for technical onboarding, not just the commercial agreement.

A European brand has three basic routes:

1. Direct to the retailer. You, or your UK entity, become the retailer's supplier, delivering to its depots and handling orders, invoicing, promotional funding and returns. GSCOP protects direct suppliers of designated retailers. You still need a UK importer arrangement and the UK address on pack.
2. Through a UK importer or distributor. The distributor buys from you, imports, holds stock in the UK, delivers to depots or stores and carries the credit risk. Its name and address can serve as the UK importer address on the label. This is usually faster for a new or small range, in exchange for the distributor's margin and less direct contact with the buyer.
3. Through specialty and wholesale routes. Specialty distributors and wholesalers reach independent grocers, delis, farm shops, department-store food halls and online retailers. A sales record there can strengthen a later pitch to the large chains.

Import controls also shape the choice. Products of animal origin, composite products, high-risk food and feed not of animal origin, and medium and high-risk plants and plant products need an advance notification on IPAFFS, the import system for Great Britain, and some animal products also need a health certificate. Every commercial import into Great Britain also needs a customs declaration, made by an importer with a GB EORI number or by its customs agent. An experienced importer or customs agent handles these filings, but check your product's category and the current GOV.UK guidance early, because these controls change.

Margins differ by retailer, category and route. In the Functional Brands Group team's experience, UK grocery buyers usually discuss margin as a share of the retail selling price excluding VAT. Between your price and the shelf sit freight and import costs, the importer or distributor margin, the retailer margin, VAT where it applies, and the promotional funding the retailer expects. Work backward from a realistic shelf price for the category to see what you can achieve at the factory gate.

GSCOP limits what designated retailers can require. A retailer must not require a payment as a condition of listing except in relation to a promotion or for genuinely new products, where it reflects a reasonable estimate of the retailer's risk. It must not require payment for better positioning or more space unless it relates to a promotion, or contributions to its artwork, packaging design or market research costs unless the supply agreement provides for them. Nor can it require a supplier to fund most of the cost of a promotion. Even so, promotional funding and launch support are a normal part of a UK grocery plan and belong in your price model from the start.

• A one-page category case with current market data and the gap your product fills
• UK-compliant artwork: mandatory information, emphasized allergens, nutrition declaration and UK importer address
• GTINs and barcodes for units and cases
• A GFSI-recognized certificate, or SALSA where the buyer accepts it
• A price structure from ex-works to shelf, by route
• A first-year promotional plan, checked against HFSS rules where they apply
• A named UK importer or distributor, with lead times and depot delivery confirmed
• Samples and specifications ready to send

Union Trade represents food and beverage brands to UK and European retail buyers. We help you build the category case, check labels against UK rules, find and set up the importer and distributor route, and present your range to grocery, specialty and department-store buyers, then negotiate the terms. We work alongside customs agents and regulatory consultants, who make the filings and give formal sign-off. See distribution & retail listings and market intelligence & buyer outreach, or tell us about your brand.