For the second year running Hart Worldwide, sole supplier of apples and pears to Asda, won a prestigious award in The Sunday Times “Best Companies to Work For” survey.
The company won the “Best for Wellbeing Award” category for small and medium enterprises and was also the most improved company of the 13,000 surveyed. Overall Hart Worldwide came second out of the top 100 companies short-listed, an improvement on the eighth position it achieved last year.
Hart Worldwide was the only fresh produce company to be short listed in the top 100 companies. All UK companies were eligible to enter and an employee survey contributed 80 per cent of the marks towards the overall ranking, with the balance coming from an assessment of benefits packages and employment policies.
Daniel Hart, executive chairman of Hart Worldwide, said: “I am extremely proud of the world class team at Hart Worldwide. The industry is constantly looking to attract new talent and I hope that this award shows that fresh produce sector can be a great place to work. I am particularly pleased with being top in the category for Wellbeing where almost 90 per cent of all our colleagues said they were happy with the balance between work and home life. It is also a remarkable achievement to have been the most improved company surveyed given our excellent result last year.”
The awards - run by The Sunday Times and sponsored by the DTI (department for trade and industry) and Investors in People - were presented at the Battersea Park Events Centre on March 3.
The Hart family have been in the industry for three generations and remain actively involved in the company. The company was selected by ASDA to be its sole apple and pear supplier in 2000 and now supplies over 15 per cent of all fresh apples and pears consumed in the UK, making it the largest UK supplier in this category.
Since this time the company said it has developed into one of the most efficient suppliers in the industry, packing almost 100 per cent at source, much of which is delivered direct to supermarket depots. The company has a policy of ‘giving back’ to the communities in which it operates, with superior grower returns and a policy of adding value at source. In addition, Hart Worldwide is actively involved in many community projects, both locally and overseas.
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