A buyers’ charter appears likely to slip into the fresh produce arena in the next month and we can only hope that, although voluntary, it has more impact than the toothless OFT code of practice.

Maybe it was naive to expect that any code of practice could work when the dice were so heavily loaded in one side’s favour, but you can’t blame the OFT for trying. At the very least, the initial attempt at sorting out any abuse of the relationships between the UK supermarkets and their suppliers got this piece of dirty washing aired in public.

Like so many codes, policing of it, rather than its content, was where it fell down. I’ve just been away on jury service and let me tell you, the OFT is far from being alone in failing on that.

Nobody would have to look too far for examples of deeds and demands that fall outside the parameters of the code - our well-received article on over-riders last week illustrated that.

But introducing rules and regulations, voluntary or otherwise is one thing; to enforce meaningful penalties is another entirely.

It has always been difficult to see any situation where a supplier will put its business on the line to settle a dispute with its customer. But times have changed, and as the supplier network diminishes in number there are companies out there with a lot less to lose than was previously the case.