The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has provisionally decided that Aldi, Lidl GB and Lidl NI should be subject to the same competition rules as other major supermarkets, potentially ending a 16-year exemption.
The Groceries Market Investigation (Controlled Land) Order 2010 currently applies to seven large grocery retailers (LGRs): Asda, Co-op, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Waitrose. These rules prevent LGRs from using land agreements, such as restrictive covenants and exclusivity arrangements, to make it harder for rival supermarkets to open nearby.
Why the exemption existed
When the order was made in 2010, Aldi and Lidl were excluded because they were considered "limited assortment discounters" (LADs) selling a "significantly more limited range of groceries than the LGRs at a low price." However, the CMA's review found that both chains have since expanded their store footprints, product ranges, and procurement models, and now rank among the top five retailers by market share.
The UK food and grocery market is worth an estimated £215 billion.
What the CMA proposes
In a statement released on Friday, the CMA said it had "provisionally found" that Aldi, Lidl GB and Lidl NI are LGRs based on three key criteria: store footprint and geographic coverage (each operates larger grocery stores over 1,000 square metres), product range (each carries a full range of groceries), and procurement model (each purchases directly from suppliers through an integrated wholesaling function).
Juliette Enser, Executive Director of Competition Enforcement and Markets at the CMA, said: "We want everyone to have the best choice of supermarket and range of prices when buying their groceries. To ensure this happens, we put rules in place to prevent big supermarket chains blocking rival stores from opening nearby – and now we propose applying those rules to Aldi and Lidl too."
Next steps
The CMA is inviting stakeholders to submit views on the provisional findings by Monday, September 7, 2026 at 5pm. It will review responses before making a final decision in the autumn. If confirmed, Aldi and Lidl would be subject to the land agreement rules, levelling the playing field for all major supermarkets.
