The Groceries Supply Code of Practice of 2010 requires the largest supermarkets to “deal with its suppliers fairly and lawfully.” Since 2013, the Groceries Code Adjudicator has enforced it.
On 26 January 2016, the Adjudicator, Christine Tacon, found that Tesco had “seriously breached” the Code. It had “acted unreasonably when delaying payments to suppliers.”