CMA Designates Aldi and Lidl as Large Grocery Retailers, Bringing Them Within Controlled Land Rules That Bar Restrictive Property Agreements
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed on 22 October 2026 that Aldi, Lidl GB and Lidl NI are designated as 'Large Grocery Retailers' (LGRs) under the Groceries Market Investigation (Controlled Land) Order 2010. The designation extends to the two discounters the same set of land-agreement restrictions that have applied to Asda, Co-op, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Waitrose since the Order came into force 16 years ago. The Order was introduced following a groceries market investigation by the Competition Commission (the CMA's predecessor) and is designed to prevent designated retailers from using restrictive covenants and exclusivity arrangements in land agreements to block rival supermarkets from opening nearby. By including Aldi and Lidl, the CMA ensures that the two fastest-growing grocery chains cannot use such property tactics to entrench their competitive positions. Following the CMA's August 2026 consultation, interested parties including Morrisons, Waitrose and Iceland all submitted views supporting the designation. Neither Aldi, Lidl GB nor Lidl NI made representations. The CMA's decision means the discounters cannot include any prohibited restrictions in new land agreements, and their existing agreements can be reviewed by the CMA on the request of interested landowners, developers and rival supermarkets. The UK food and grocery market is estimated to be worth around £222.7 billion, with Aldi and Lidl ranking among the top five retailers by market share.
Why this matters
The designation closes what had become an increasingly noticeable competitive asymmetry: Aldi and Lidl had grown from marginal discounters into top-five grocery retailers by market share since the 2010 Order was made, yet remained outside its scope. Bringing them within the controlled land rules matters because restrictive property covenants are one of the most durable tools an incumbent retailer can use to suppress local competition, and the discounters now have substantial property estates with which to do exactly that. The decision reflects the CMA's stated commitment to keeping regulatory frameworks calibrated to current market realities rather than historic market structures. For rival grocers and property developers seeking to open near existing Aldi or Lidl sites, the practical effect is immediate: the CMA can review existing agreements on request.
On the Ground
This decision activates competition law and real estate practice groups advising grocery clients, property developers, and landowners. Firms advising Aldi, Lidl, or their competitors will need to review existing land agreements for potentially prohibited restrictions, advise on what constitutes a compliant agreement going forward, and assess whether existing covenants are reviewable by the CMA on a third-party request. Property transactions near discounter sites now carry a regulatory dimension that was previously absent. No specific law firms are named in the sources. A trainee on this matter would draft regulatory notification summaries, compile a schedule of existing land agreements for compliance review, prepare licence condition summaries mapping the Order's restrictions against current contractual terms, and assist with a compliance gap analysis memo.
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“What practical steps should Aldi or Lidl's legal advisers take following the CMA's designation under the Groceries Market Investigation (Controlled Land) Order 2010?”
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