The Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) has reassured suppliers that their identity is protected by law when they raise issues, and that retailers are committed to preventing retaliation. This follows discussions at the GCA's 2026 annual conference, where YouGov presented findings on supplier confidence in raising concerns.
The GCA stated that it can address issues without revealing who contacted it, for example, by stripping out identifying information or speaking to trade associations to build an anonymised picture. This approach has led to retailers resolving Code issues without compromising supplier anonymity.
Concerns about retailer retaliation were also discussed at the conference. While the GCA takes these seriously, YouGov's findings indicated that suppliers generally had positive experiences engaging with Chief Compliance Officers (CCOs). All 14 retailers have committed to ensuring suppliers do not face negative consequences for raising issues.
The GCA monitors how retailers meet their commitments, including CCOs following up after an issue is resolved to check that raising it has not negatively affected the supplier's business.