A family-owned farm has extended its partnership with a national supermarket chain.
Evesham Vale Growers (EVG) is in celebration mode after extending its partnership with Aldi for another year.
Located off Birmingham Road in Blackminster, EVG will supply Britain’s fifth-largest supermarket with tomatoes and spring onions for the eighth year running.
Mark Arnold, sales manager at EVG, said: “Our partnership with Aldi has been very productive and encouraged us to continue with our long-term plans to develop our growing and production facilities.
“As well as helping us to support our business year-round with stronger demand, the partnership has also allowed us to develop our sustainable practices and continue with our sustainability targets.”
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The family-owned business has been farming since 1976 and now employs around 400 people in the local area across its growing and packaging sites.
The long-standing partnership has helped contribute to EVG’s continued growth and has allowed the business to develop its sustainable farming practices, with an aim of achieving net zero by 2040.
This year it will supply Aldi with nine million spring onions and 11 million tomatoes.
To put this in context, that many tomatoes would be enough to cover the distance from Evesham all the way to Big Ben if the fruits were lined up.
Julie Ashfield, managing director of buying at Aldi UK, said: “Supporting British businesses is at the heart of everything we do at Aldi and working alongside local, family-owned farms like EVG is particularly important to us.
“EVG’s commitment to sustainability is something that really aligns with our own values, and we are excited to continue to support the team’s carbon neutral journey in the year ahead.”
Aldi has committed to increasing spend with British suppliers by an additional £3.5 billion a year by the end of 2025.
It is hoped that this pledge will help hundreds of British businesses continue to grow with the supermarket and invest for the future.
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