Mechanisms for Product Quality and Food Safety: Tips for Entry into the Supermarket

By Rene Guarin
Executive Director, Upland Marketing Program

Mr. Guarin introduced the Upland Marketing Program and related about its nearly twelve years of experience in selling directly to supermarkets. He said that direct selling to supermarkets is inevitable given the worldwide trend of increasing rate of grocery sales due to various factors, such as the modernization of procurement, increasing incomes, and the growing preference of buyers for safety and convenience which the supermarkets can offer. He explained about the three waves of supermarket diffusion and noted that increasingly, supermarkets are adding more and more carts of fresh produce , fully allowing retail purchases for such just as the public markets would. More and more have flocked to the supermarkets instead of the usual public wet markets, as the latter has stricter standards for food safety and product quality.

In some countries, such as in India, prices in supermarkets are even lower than other outlets. He related the major concerns for suppliers who are dealing with supermarkets, which are volume, and reliability/ availability of consistent supplies of products. He narrated UMF’s experience to illustrate the point about the need to meet the high standards set by the supermarkets, and their requirement for consistent, steady supply of products in huge stocks or volume. He also talked about mechanisms for product quality and food safety, and the matter of who sets the standards <>. He said that observing standards involves a lot of cost and effort, and standard setting will not really work if production remains small scale.

He gave examples of products that cost less to produce in good quality if done on a large-scale basis. Dealing with supermarkets means dealing with the issue of scale, which determines cost benefit and recovery for suppliers. In conclusion, Mr. Guarin said that compliance per se will not make the products sell, but it is in really knowing, and giving, what the customers like.


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