Martin Godfrey said he had never supplied Tesco and was surprised to find the picture being used on the firm's website.
The supermarket chain acquired the image through an agency.
A Tesco spokesperson said: "We work tirelessly to support farmers and suppliers and we are sorry for any upset that has been caused."
Mr Godfrey, from Okehampton, Devon, said the picture was originally taken when he was working for Shillingford Organics near Exeter, but was later sold on as a stock image.
Tesco later got the image through its advertising agency, which acquired it from Getty Images.
Mr Godfrey owns an organic produce business and campaigns with the Land Workers' Alliance.
He said the picture of him pulling carrots on the organic farm was a "marketing blunder".
"This inappropriate use of the organic farming image and myself... was taken whilst working at Shillingford Organics some 10 years ago, which has no connection to Tesco whatsoever," he said.
The image has been removed from the supermarket's online promotions, but remains printed in some of its magazines.
Tesco has promised not to use the image in future promotions.
It has offered to donate Â£1,000 to a local charity, Mr Godfrey said.
He said he appreciated the supermarket was "doing something about food waste" and suggested other chains should do the same.

Once Kyle Abbott dismissed Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews for 59 in the third over of the day in Port Elizabeth, the tone was set.
Abbott (2-38), Kagiso Rabada (3-77) and Keshav Maharaj (3-86) all played their part as they went 1-0 up in the series.
Stephen Cook's second-innings 117 had set the home side up for the win.
South Africa are on track for a third-straight series win after losing their number one ranking at the start of the year.
The second game in the three-match series starts in Cape Town on 2 January.

The one-year-old was handed in to the Dogs Trust near Darlington in December after being found wandering the streets as a stray.
Following an appeal on social media, the canine with "a heart of gold" has found a new forever family.
The trust said Fester would be leaving the charity's kennels early next week.
Fester was born with a narrow jaw which causes his lower teeth to stick out - creating some "unique features", a trust spokeswoman said.
"We were concerned that fun-loving Fester may have ended up being over-looked by potential new owners due to his unusual eye-catching appearance," she added.
"He is a gorgeous boy with an amazing character, so we couldn't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to have him as part of their family.
"He's had a rough time and it is fantastic news he will have a new home where he can settle and hopefully his character will shine through."
An organic farmer has persuaded Tesco to take down a photograph of him from its website.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
South Africa beat Sri Lanka by 206 runs thanks to a five-wicket haul in the first 14 overs on the final day of the first Test.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
Abandoned because of his bizarre looks, Fester the boxer dog, who is blind in one eye and has a protruding lower jaw, has finally been found a new home.