Natures Way Foods (NWF) is one of the UK’s leading bagged salads and prepared fruit suppliers and has made a name for itself in one of the most forward-thinking categories in the fresh produce aisles.

The Sussex-based company has seen its share of the bagged salads market reach 24 per cent and turnover hit £95 million last year, making it the second-biggest force in a £440m market.

At the same time, the firm has made inroads into the fresh prepared fruit sector, taking an eight per cent share in a £252m sector.

The business counts Tesco, Waitrose, Prêt-a-Manager and McDonald’s as just some of its customers.

It has been a busy 12 months and this year alone, the firm’s trophy cabinet has seen the addition of certification by the CRF Institute as one of Britain’s top 100 employers for 2010, the BSOHSAS 180001 for health and safety as well as a Fair Working Conditions Certificate for its Runcorn site as part of an audit for Morrisons. Next month, the firm will also receive a further BS14001 accreditation for its sustainability and environment practices.

This success hasn’t come easy, but the company’s rise in the marketplace has been born out of the simplicity of a demanding business plan and workable principles.

“NWF has built its brand and therefore reputation on delivering consistently and remorselessly in key areas that are of paramount importance to our customers and suppliers,” says Ian Summerfield, chief commercial officer at NWF. These areas are quality, safety, service, price and innovation. “If the business always delivers in these areas, then existing customers stay with us and we grow with them, and new customers discover us and build new long-term relationships. Our brand has always been built on the quality and strength of the relationship we have with our people. We employ and retain knowledgeable, hard-working, bright, energetic and passionate people who share our business values,” he tells FPJ.

But how do you keep on building the business, especially during an economic downturn? How do you keep getting better? The answer lies within the foundation of those business principles that have been delivered from the management team at the top and have filtered their way to all 450 of NWF’s employees.

“Both the markets that we operate in are in steady growth despite the recession,” Summerfield explains. “Prepared fruit has felt more impact from the recession, as it was a less well-established market going into the recession, with lower penetration - it is still very much a discretionary purchase for customers. It’s a market that relies on constant penetration growth to sustain it and this has been impacted by the effects of the reduced spending power of the consumer.”

But NWF is delivering this ahead of its business plans, according to Summerfield. “Much of the reason that surrounds this is that we are very focused on what we need to achieve in all areas of the business to continue to grow,” he says.

NWF has defined business objectives at a total business level and then down through the individual departments that are structured around three key areas - secure the base, beat the competition and grow new shoots.

Listening to the customer might be one of the oldest clichés in the book, but where such a demanding and challenging sector is concerned it really is a must.

“By listening to consumers and customers and delivering value to both continuously, we will continue to grow in current markets and seize opportunities in new ones,” says Summerfield. “Our success is based on never standing still and always looking for new ways to do things or new opportunities. This will continue to stand us in good stead for the future.

“Our priority is to continue to deliver value in the supply chain in all directions and to maintain a strong base of efficiency and control so that we can continue to develop and invest for the future.”

This is where innovation and development are crucial and here lies another of NWF’s secrets for success. According to the firm, capital spend in the factories to date has meant production lines have achieved an additional 28 million units from the original factory footprint.

Bagged salads also remains a strong market to be in. Macro consumer trends suggest that it should continue to grow in the future, as long as innovation and development carries on.

“But health, freshness and convenience can be delivered in a myriad of other ways so we need to ensure we focus on the strengths of salad and innovate hard around our consumer understanding of their needs and unmet needs,” says Summerfield. “We must deliver what consumers want, when they want it and in a format and of the quality that they value.”

In the next few years, the company will also focus on many key areas, among them freshness perception, making the most of nutritional benefits of its categories, creating the ultimate in convenience through its products, sustainability and maximising eating occasion opportunities.