Simon Mount, from SS Mount in Canterbury, Kent, took top place with judges praising the consistently high quality of his produce grown on the supermarket's behalf.

Tesco also singled out the care of handling dedicated to each item, consistently good picking policies and detailed information supplied to packhouses.

Mount was also commended for investing in new stock to replace old trees, installing sophisticated irrigation systems and for conducting his own accurate starch and sugar measurements.

The farm had already won the store's Nature's Choice Gold Standard in recognition of its track record in adopting best practice.

Close runners up were Alan Firmin Ltd from Linton, Kent and Charles Highwood from Cranbrook, Kent.

Both companies also received special mention by the judges for producing high quality products, despite difficult conditions over the past two seasons.

Tesco said in a statement that it had has established the new award scheme to 'recognise all of the expertise, dedication and hard work invested by growers who supply the supermarket with the best quality top fruit in the retail trade.' Fresh produce category director Steve Murrells said: 'The products we put on our shelves can only ever be as good as the growers who supply us. The Tesco Grower of the Year award is our way of rewarding their diligence, expertise – and ultimately their success.' The chain is now considering expanding the number of categories in future years, and although aimed primarily at small growers, organisers are looking at the possibility of throwing the awards open to all UK growers with separate categories to reflect the disparate sectors.

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