A group of fruit and vegetable growers have collaborated under the name of Northumbrian Fields to provide JR Holland Food Services with locally grown produce including potatoes, strawberries, broccoli, carrots and other vegetables.
As the major supplier of fresh produce to independent retailers, restaurant owners and local authorities, including schools and councils, in the North East, JR Holland has a policy to source locally wherever possible, but has struggled to meet the sheer volume of produce needed from local growers alone.
Dennis Hutchinson, managing director of JR Holland, said: “As a business that operates in the North East, we want to support local farms and independent growers in our region and, at the same time, provide our customers with the best-quality, locally sourced produce.
“There are numerous benefits to local sourcing, including savings on food miles and economic support to our region, yet the quality of produce we offer and the ability to meet customer demands also has to be high on our agenda. We are very pleased to have strengthened our relationship with Northumbrian Fields, which overcomes the issues we have faced in the past when it comes to identifying and co-ordinating enough local growers to meet our demands.”
The Northumbrian Fields collaboration has been spearheaded by Nick Craigs, director of J Craigs Ltd at Tritlington Hall Farm, Morpeth, who has identified a network of other growers in the region to unite with, enabling the group to come together under one name in order to supply JR Holland.
Exclusively devised and delivered to JR Holland, Northumbrian Fields now has its own brand identity which will be used on all locally sourced produce.
