One of the issues fueling protests from farm workers across recent days centers on the same point: the entire food supply chain bears a heavy administrative load. Now the latest link in that chain—the supermarkets—confirms the claim. Recent data from Asedas, the Spanish association representing distributors, self- service chains, and supermarkets, shows that in 2023 a total of 1,140 rules were approved or amended affecting the trade sector. That figure works out to a little more than three regulatory changes per day. Brands such as Aldi, Condis, Consum, Dia, Lidl, and Mercadona are among the voices behind the numbers.
These totals stand far from the peak levels of 2020 and 2021, when the figures exceeded 3,000 and 2,500 respectively. Those years were heavily influenced by pandemic-related regulations. Excluding those two periods, however, the curve of laws modified or enacted year by year has risen since 2019: fewer than 500 in 2019, around 1,000 in 2022, and more than 1,100 in the most recent year, marking about a 14% increase. The trend underscores a sustained rise in regulatory activity, even when pandemic spikes are removed from the calculation.
According to Asedas’ analysis, nearly half of the measures are environmental texts (486 in total). The remainder mainly involves administrative matters tied to food safety (254) and corporate governance or internal affairs (221).
“The trade sector—food distribution especially—is committed to circular economy practices, decarbonization, and transparent reporting to improve supply chain efficiency,” states Maria Martinez-Herrera, the sustainability director at Asedas, in a public release. “Yet, the regulations arriving from all levels of government, spanning the entire production and distribution value chain, generate substantial operating and economic costs. In some cases, these costs threaten the viability of the traditional retail model in Spain.” Martinez-Herrera also notes the uneven criteria for selling organic products across different regions as an illustrative challenge.
The association also raises concerns about the ongoing EU packaging and packaging waste regulation negotiations. Asedas points out that the expected economic impact could reach roughly 150,000 euros per store merely for equipment installation, with additional personnel and logistical costs to come. These figures highlight how a single regulatory area can ripple through labor, warehousing, and daily operations across networks of stores.
Ultimately, the report finds that regional administrations are the most intensive regulators, followed by European institutions, with national-level policies trailing behind. The pattern suggests a multi-layered compliance environment where stores must navigate a patchwork of rules that vary by jurisdiction and by policy domain. The result is a broad, ongoing administrative burden that affects the practical economics of running supermarket chains across the country.