TESCO Correspondence, Part III: 

When a Retail Giant Answers Without Answering

In response to the letter featured in the article titled TESCO Part 2., I sent the following message to TESCO on January 21, 2026. I have included the English translation of that letter below.

"Dear Tesco,

I would like to ask that, in the future, you express your position with particular care when addressing this extremely sensitive issue that affects so many people.

I would also like to draw your attention to the fact that the corporate goals you referenced do not currently include taking action against the global obesity crisis. Of course, I am aware that Tesco offers many healthy food options. However, it must be stated clearly: if people consume too much of any food — even healthy ones — it leads to weight gain.

According to WHO data, approximately 2.5 billion people worldwide are overweight or obese, and around 5 million people die each year from obesity‑related causes. One major contributing factor is that the world produces enough food for 13.5 billion people, despite having a population of only 8 billion. A significant portion of this overproduction is sold through various neuromarketing techniques used by retail chains — including, for example, the use of oversized shopping carts.

I would like to understand why no substantive response was provided to my initial inquiry for nearly 22 months. I was previously told that the matter would be reviewed by the appropriate department. Please inform me what decision was made. Is Tesco planning to review its neuromarketing practices, and will you consider warning customers about the risks of over‑purchasing?

Dear Evelin, I am convinced that in your environment — as in almost everyone's — there are people struggling with weight‑related issues. The WHO's figure of 2.5 billion affected individuals speaks for itself. We cannot assume that such a vast number of people ended up in this situation simply due to "lack of willpower." The problem is systemic, and decades of overproduction combined with sales techniques that encourage overconsumption have contributed to it.

The existence of 2.5 billion affected people clearly indicates that overproduction and aggressive sales incentives are real factors. Consumers did not gain weight from "thin air" — but from the food produced and sold by the global food industry, including your company. The responsibility is therefore unavoidable.

I ask you to take an active role in mitigating this problem and to review any practices that may endanger customers' health. I trust that Tesco will, in the future, include combating the global obesity crisis among its corporate goals.

I also ask that, in future communication, you pay special attention to ensuring that overweight and obese individuals do not feel targeted by disrespectful or misleading messaging. Maintaining customer trust is in all of our interests.

Sincerely, Zoltán Bíró"

Tesco's Response

"Dear Zoltán Bíró,

Thank you for contacting our customer service with your feedback.

In our stores, we provide several options to meet our customers' shopping needs, both in our product range and in the sizes of our shopping carts and baskets. All our stores offer large shopping carts for individuals or families who do bigger, even monthly, shopping trips. Customers may also freely choose our smaller, wheeled shopping baskets, which are comfortable to move and significantly smaller than our carts.

We would also like to draw your attention to our "Scan&Shop" service, which allows customers to place their purchases directly into their own containers or bags. The purpose of this service is to speed up and simplify the shopping process, and if customers bring their own baskets or bags, they can influence the quantity of products they choose to buy. This option is also available for online shopping, where you determine the quantity of items you wish to order.

In all our stores, we strive to meet our customers' needs as broadly as possible — whether it is a large family shopping trip or a quick purchase of one or two missing items — and we provide the appropriate tools from which customers can choose according to their own judgment.

If you have any questions about our Scan&Shop service or if we can assist you with anything else, please feel free to contact us.

Kind regards, Vivien Customer Service Representative"

Analysis: Tesco Responded — But Not to the Actual Questions

While Tesco's reply is polite and structured, it avoids addressing the core issues raised in the original letter. Instead of responding to the concerns about:

• neuromarketing practices,

• oversized shopping carts as behavioral nudges,

• the global obesity crisis,

• corporate responsibility,

• the 22‑month delay in providing a substantive answer,

• or whether Tesco plans to revise its sales strategies,

the company shifts the conversation to a generic description of shopping cart sizes and the Scan&Shop service.

This is a classic example of corporate deflection: answering around the question without ever touching the substance.

Tesco's message frames the issue as a matter of "customer choice," sidestepping the systemic factors highlighted in the original letter — factors that major retailers undeniably influence. The response reads like a template designed to reassure without committing to any change, review, or acknowledgment of responsibility.

In short: Tesco replied, but they did not actually respond.

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Tesco Correspondence, Part IV“Blah Blah Blah”: When Corporate Flattery Replaces Responsibility

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