Tesco Supplier Requirements: A Food Maker's Guide

There is no single public checklist that guarantees a Tesco food listing. The first question is which route you mean: selling your brand on supermarket shelves, making a Tesco own-brand product, supplying a distributor that sells to retailers, or selling through Tesco Marketplace. Each has a different buyer, commercial relationship and set of checks.

Tesco says that manufacturers of its own-brand products must meet its manufacturing and sourcing standards, and that it visits and approves sites before manufacture. Its latest sustainability report says it audits supplier sites against a Tesco Standard comparable with Global Food Safety Initiative requirements. These statements do not establish one BRCGS grade that every branded food supplier must hold. Tesco Code of Business Conduct, pp. 14–15; Tesco Sustainability Report 2025/26, p. 66.

If you are planning a wider retail search, see our guide to finding buyers in export markets. The preparation below will also help you compare Tesco with other possible buyers.

Start with this preparation checklist

This is a practical manufacturer checklist, not an official Tesco application form or a list of universal Tesco rules.

• Choose your route: branded shelf product, Tesco own-brand manufacture, supply through a distributor, or Marketplace selling.
• Write a one-page product brief: product, pack size, shelf life, storage conditions, current markets and what makes it useful to shoppers.
• Put your product specification, ingredient and allergen information, label artwork, food safety records and any relevant certificates in one place.
• Map who makes, packs, imports, stores and delivers the product. Identify which party would sell to Tesco.
• Test your landed cost, production capacity, minimum viable order and ability to keep stock available.
• Check the current UK food rules for your exact product and selling route. For prepacked food, start with the UK government's food labelling guidance.
• Ask a prospective buyer which category, technical and onboarding requirements apply before spending money on a new certificate, pack or system.

Four routes that are easy to confuse

Your branded product on Tesco shelves. Tesco would decide whether the item fits its range and what commercial and technical checks apply. A strong pitch explains the shopper need, the shelf position, the selling price you propose and why the product adds something useful to the category. A good product brief is a way to start a discussion; it is not a listing application or a promise of a meeting.

Manufacturing a Tesco own-brand product. Here the product carries a Tesco brand, so Tesco has a more direct role in the product specification and production site. Its 2018 Code says its manufacturing and sourcing standards apply to products made for Tesco brands, and that sites are visited and approved before manufacture. A Tesco food safety document describes an on-site audit and agreed product specifications for a new Tesco-brand food supplier. That document is older, so the current requirements must be confirmed with Tesco's technical team for the product and site concerned. Tesco Code of Business Conduct, pp. 14–15; Tesco product safety case study, p. 2.

Selling to a distributor. A distributor may buy your product and propose it to Tesco or other retailers. Your contract is with the distributor unless a separate agreement says otherwise. Ask who owns the listing discussion, product data, stock, delivery and returns. Supplying a distributor does not put your product on Tesco shelves automatically.

Tesco Marketplace. This is a separate online seller route. Tesco's current help page invites businesses to apply to sell on Marketplace, and its Marketplace information says third-party sellers deliver their products to customers. The Marketplace seller application is therefore not an application for a supermarket grocery shelf listing. Check the product types and seller terms on the application before treating this route as relevant to your food product. Tesco Marketplace FAQ.

What can you verify about Tesco's food requirements?

Tesco's public documents are useful, but their scope matters. The older food quality guide says Tesco only sources products from suppliers that can demonstrate good food safety and hygiene practice. It describes visits and audits, then specifically describes Tesco's own manufacturing standards for Tesco-brand products. The newer 2025/26 sustainability report says supplier sites are audited against a Tesco Standard. Neither source publishes a universal BRCGS Grade A or AA rule for every food maker seeking a branded shelf listing.

Tesco also publishes human rights requirements for food and grocery non-food suppliers. The document sets out Sedex registration and self-assessment requirements for primary supplier sites, with further audit rules based on risk and supply-chain role. It says the controlled version sits in Tesco Quality Connect, so a prospective supplier should confirm the current policy and whether it applies to its sites with Tesco. An ethical audit is a different check from a food safety factory audit.

For a new own-brand food supplier, Tesco's older product safety case study describes site approval, an agreed product specification, and checks that may include shelf-life, microbiological, nutritional, factory and packaging work. The exact work depends on the product. Do not turn that description into a fixed sequence or timetable for all listings.

If you already have BRCGS, IFS or another food safety certificate, put its scope and latest audit result in your brief. Ask the buyer or technical team which evidence they will accept. A certificate can support a discussion, but it does not replace a retailer's product and site checks.

Prepare a buyer brief that answers practical questions

Build one page around the product, not a long company presentation. State the product name and format; what shoppers would use it for; the difference from nearby products; where it is already sold; pack and case sizes; shelf life and temperature needs; and the production site. Add a clear product image and a contact for technical questions.

Then make a separate working sheet for your commercial assumptions: proposed wholesale price, transport and import costs, minimum viable order, manufacturing capacity and promotional support you could realistically afford. These are questions to prepare for, not published Tesco minimums or fees. If you cannot answer them yet, mark them as open rather than inventing figures.

For food sold in the UK, check the current rules before finalising artwork. UK guidance lists information that may need to appear on prepacked food labels, including the food name, date, quantity, ingredients, relevant origin and storage details. It also explains how allergens must be shown. Requirements can vary by product and whether it is sold in Great Britain or Northern Ireland, so use the official food labelling guidance and a qualified adviser for the final check. This is a legal market requirement, not a Tesco-only rule.

Ask the right questions before you commit money

If a Tesco category buyer or a distributor shows interest, request the current requirements in writing. Useful questions include:

1. Is the proposal for a branded item, own-brand manufacture or a distributor's range?
2. Who is the direct supplier and importer, and who enters product information into Tesco's systems?
3. Which food safety, site, ethical and product checks apply to this item and factory?
4. What pack, case, delivery and product data format does the buyer need?
5. What are the proposed commercial terms, and which costs or changes would be yours?
6. Which financial records and insurance cover must you provide?
7. What decision would come next, and who can confirm the current process?

Do not assume that an old supplier portal, a customer-service channel or the Marketplace form is the right route for a new grocery proposal. The public sources linked here do not establish one current grocery supplier application covering every category. Confirm the correct category route through Tesco or through the distributor you are speaking with.

Keep the decision wider than one retailer

A Tesco listing may fit your product, but it should be one possible buyer decision within a wider market plan. Compare the shelf opportunity with other retailers, importers and distributors against your capacity, margins and technical workload. That gives you options if a category has no opening for your product.

ProspectX books buyer meetings for manufacturers in agreed markets; the manufacturer presents the product, negotiates and makes the sale. We cannot promise a Tesco introduction or a UK result. To discuss where your product may have buyer demand, see how our process works and book a first call. See if there are buyers for your product.