Rules by country / Europe / EU Unfair Trading Practices Directive
The EU Unfair Trading Practices Directive: what buyers can and can't ask
Across the EU, supermarkets and other big buyers of food and drink may not pay late, change terms on their own or charge for nothing in return. They may charge for promotions, listing or marketing only if it was agreed clearly in advance. We bring the evidence on how your sales respond to price, for every negotiation.
A guide, not legal advice. Countries may set stricter rules. Payment deadlines run from delivery or from the end of an agreed delivery period.
An evidence pack for price talks
How your sales really respond to price, product by product and retailer by retailer, set out as evidence for each price request and promotion.
- How your sales really respond to price, product by product, measured from your own data
- The evidence for each price request, in the form buyers expect
- What a cost rise does to volume and profit at each retailer
- A plan for each negotiation, and an Excel model
How your results look
| Product | Price request | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Yoghurt, 4 x 125g | +5% | Volume falls about 2% |
| Sparkling water, 1.5 litres | +4% | Shoppers switch within the brand |
| Cheese, 200g | +6% | Hold: shoppers switch to own label |
Fictional products. Every real result comes with the expected sales and profit, and a likely range.
Your options
Every option has a fixed price, agreed before we start.
Evidence pack
- The evidence for each price request
- Price plan for each retailer
- Scenario model and a walk-through
Full pricing review
- Everything in the evidence pack
- Prices and promotions for the whole range
- How your products take sales from each other
Portfolio review
- Everything in the pricing review
- More retailers and data sources
- A plan for each channel
After the project: a refresh before each pricing round, from £2,000 (about €2,400). Prices are fixed in pounds sterling; amounts in euros are a guide at October 2026 exchange rates. We're based in the UK and work remotely, in English, under NDA.
How it works
From the first call to your plan in about three weeks.
A free 15-minute call
Tell us about your range. We say whether a review would pay for itself, and quote a fixed price.
Your data
Sales by product and retailer, recipes and costs. We sign an NDA before anything moves.
Your plan
The evidence for each price request and a plan for each negotiation, walked through with your team.
The EU Unfair Trading Practices Directive: the detail
Open only what you need.
- Law
- Directive (EU) 2019/633 on unfair trading practices in the agricultural and food supply chain, applied by every member state
- Always banned
- Payment later than 30 days for perishable products or 60 days for others; cancelling perishable orders at short notice; one-sided changes; payments not tied to a sale; charging for losses after delivery that aren't the supplier's fault; refusing written confirmation; misusing trade secrets; retaliation; charging for customer complaints
- Only if agreed in advance
- Returning unsold products, fees for stocking, display or listing, and payments for promotions, marketing, advertising or the buyer's staff
- Who is protected
- Suppliers with turnover up to €350 million selling to bigger buyers, with different levels of protection below that; suppliers outside the EU too, if the buyer is in the EU
- Going further
- Countries may set stricter rules, and many protect suppliers of every size
- Across borders
- A regulation adopted in 2026 lets national authorities work together on cases across borders and makes buyers outside the EU name a contact; it applies 18 months after publication. The Commission published its evaluation of the Directive in December 2025
Agree it in writing first
Promotion, listing and marketing fees are allowed only if agreed clearly in advance.
Bring the evidence
Show what a price rise does to volume and profit, product by product.
Measure what pays
Keep the deals that earn their cost, and drop the rest.
What is the Unfair Trading Practices Directive?
EU Directive 2019/633. It bans practices such as late payment and one-sided changes when bigger buyers deal with food and drink suppliers.
Which unfair trading practices are banned?
Late payment (after 30 days for perishables, 60 days for the rest), short-notice cancellations, one-sided changes, payments not tied to a sale, retaliation and more, whatever the contract says.
Can a retailer charge a supplier for promotions?
Only if it was agreed clearly and unambiguously beforehand.
Who does the Unfair Trading Practices Directive protect?
Suppliers with turnover up to €350 million selling to bigger buyers, including suppliers outside the EU selling to EU buyers.
Is the Unfair Trading Practices Directive being revised?
The Commission published its evaluation in December 2025, and a regulation on cross-border enforcement was adopted in 2026.
How much does your pricing work cost?
A review of up to 10 products has a fixed price from £7,500 (about €9,000) and takes about three weeks. For 11 to 50 products, a full pricing review costs around £17,500 (about €21,000). It starts with a free 15-minute call.
- European Commission, unfair trading practices in the agri-food supply chain
- European Parliament, new rules to protect farmers against unfair trading practices (12 February 2026)
Checked on 25 October 2026. Rules and rates change, so check the official source before making decisions. This page is not tax advice.