Delhaize withdrew orders for 300 Unilever lines last month after price negotiations collapsed. It previously cancelled 70 of the group’s lines in October last year. Unilever normally supplies Delhaize with 480 products.
It is understood that Unilever will start re-supplying Delhaize in the next few weeks.
Delhaize and Unilever said in a joint statement: “The agreement means a positive outcome for both parties and the consumer.”
The dispute reflects the growing tensions between retailers and suppliers as the economic climate toughens. After Delhaize pulled some Unilever products from its shelves, Unilever responded with an ad campaign urging customers to stay away from Delhaize stores.
Delhaize suffered from the dispute, according to a Brandhome survey. It found that 31 per cent of its customers had chosen to shop elsewhere to obtain Unilever products; of those people, 40 per cent chose rival Colruyt and 40 per cent picked French grocer Carrefour’s hypermarkets and smaller stores.
However, of those remaining customers at Delhaize, some 47 per cent switched from Unilever products to other branded items and about half purchased Delhaize own-brands.
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