Somerfield is calling on its bid suitors to make a move in order to end its long running takeover saga.
The Bristol-based supermarket said it wanted "a prompt conclusion" to the bid battle which has overshadowed its performance over the past eight months.
The announcement came as the retailer revealed a 1.8 per cent drop in like-for-like sales in the sixteen weeks to 20 August.
This was blamed on weak sales at its budget stores division Kwik Save.
A consortium comprising of property tycoon Robert Tchenguiz, private equity group Apax and Barclays Capital is battling for control of Somerfield against property group London & Regional and Japanese bank Nomura.
But neither side has yet tabled a formal bid.
Somerfield is currently valued at about £1.13bn ($2bn).
It said despite the dip in like-for-like sales, total sales in its first quarter were 17 per cent higher on the year, thanks to acquisitions including 115 stores it bought from supermarket Morrisons.
However, sales were down 5.7 per cent at its struggling Kwik Save division.
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