Agrial Fresh Produce

What Agrial Fresh Produce does

Agrial Fresh Produce is a UK-based, farming-owned agricultural cooperative and a subsidiary of the larger Agrial group, producing fresh produce with a primary focus on washed and ready-to-eat salads marketed under the Florette brand, which is described as the UK's No.1 salad brand. The company operates an integrated seed-to-shelf supply chain spanning its own farm operations (Agrial Fresh Farms Ltd in Colchester), production facilities at Lichfield (the 25-year home of Florette) and Wigan, and additional sites at Scunthorpe, with agronomy and procurement teams maintaining strategic grower relationships including some spanning over 20 years and approximately 50% of growers as cooperative stakeholders.

Its product portfolio centres on baby-leaf vegetables (spinach, rocket, baby kale, mizuna), leaf vegetables (Salanova, Lollo Rosso, radicchio, iceberg), and prepared fresh vegetables (diced peppers, shredded carrot, coleslaw mixes), with core lines of single-leaf products and complex 5–7 ingredient salad mixes. Operational technology includes ultra-sonic sealing to extend freshness, integrated foreign body reduction processes, and BRC AA+ (unannounced) certification, alongside initiatives such as the 'Clean, Dry, Safe' programme targeting a 10% water reduction by 2025 and packaging optimisation reducing plastic usage by an estimated 12.4 tonnes per year on the Florette brand.

The business model is B2B-led with consumer brand pull-through: Agrial Fresh Produce sells directly to major UK retailers and food service operators through an enterprise field-sales motion emphasising category management, market data, and collaborative partnerships, with Florette-branded products distributed through UK supermarket chains to end consumers. The cooperative ownership model provides supply chain stability and reinvestment capacity, while the company holds a stack of regulatory and ethical-trade certifications (BRC AA+, LEAF Marque, Global GAP, Red Tractor, Sedex, SBTi-verified) and has earned recognitions including EcoVadis Gold, RRT Advanced Partner status, and FareShare Leading Food Partner.

Name

Agrial Fresh Produce

Legal name

Agrial Fresh Produce Ltd

Website

https://agrialfreshproduce.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Agrial Fresh Produce is a UK farming-owned cooperative and producer of washed and ready-to-eat salads under the Florette brand, the UK's No.1 salad brand, supplying major retailers and food service operators with an integrated seed-to-shelf fresh produce operation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fresh Packaged Salads & Prepared Vegetables

NAICS

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Merchant Wholesalers (42448), Fruit and Vegetable Preserving and Specialty Food Manufacturing (3114), Vegetable and Melon Farming (1112)

SIC

Canned, Frozen & Preservd Fruit, Veg & Food Specialties (2030), Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140)

akta.pro primary industry

Fresh Cut / Value-Added Produce Wholesale (Pre-Cut, Packaged, Salad Kits) (AFAIACAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Canned Vegetables Manufacturing (AFAKACAB), Fresh Produce Wholesale Distribution (CRAOAAAC)

Keywords

• Fresh produce
• Bagged salads
• Ready-to-eat vegetables
• Prepared salads
• Farming cooperative

Headquarters

HQ city

Scunthorpe

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Fresh Produce Sales: Agrial Fresh Produce generates revenue primarily through the production and sale of fresh produce including baby-leaf, leaf vegetables, and root vegetables. Their Florette brand is the UK's No.1 salad brand. They supply washed and ready-to-eat vegetables, mixed salads, and coleslaw products to retailers.
2. Florette Branded Products: Revenue from the Florette brand of washed and ready-to-eat salad products, celebrating 25 years of production at the Lichfield facility. Florette is a consumer-facing brand sold through major UK retailers.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Agrial Fresh Produce is a UK farming-owned cooperative that grows, processes and supplies fresh produce — primarily washed and ready-to-eat salads, baby-leaf and leaf vegetables, and prepared vegetables (diced peppers, shredded carrot, coleslaw mixes) — under the Florette brand and as own-label lines, for major UK retailers and food service operators. It controls the supply chain from seed and grower programming through to washed, ready-to-eat finished packs at its Lichfield and Wigan facilities.

Product overview

Agrial Fresh Produce is a farming-owned cooperative focused on fresh produce, primarily operating under the Florette brand for ready-to-eat washed salads. Their portfolio includes baby-leaf vegetables (Baby Green Kale, Spinach, Rocket, Mizuna), leaf vegetables (Red Salanova, Lollo Rosso, Radicchio, Iceberg), and fresh vegetables (Cherry Tomatoes, Carrots, Peppers, Beetroot, Cucumber). The company supplies washed and ready-to-eat vegetables including diced peppers, shredded carrots, and coleslaw mixes, with core and complex lines ranging from iceberg to multi-ingredient salad mixes. The Florette brand serves consumers while the company also supplies fresh produce to retail and food service customers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Florette: Ready-to-eat salad brand and the UK's No.1 salad brand, part of Agrial Fresh Produce UK. The brand includes washed and ready to eat salad leaf products.

Products and services

• Florette branded washed and ready-to-eat salads The company's flagship consumer-facing product line of pre-washed, ready-to-eat leafy salads and salad mixes, marketed as the UK's No.1 salad brand and sold through major UK supermarket chains. Targets UK consumers seeking convenient, healthy fresh produce as part of a 5-a-day diet.
• Baby-leaf vegetables Young, tender leafy vegetables harvested early, including Baby Green Kale, Spinach, Rocket, Mizuna, Lambs Lettuce and Baby Red Leaf. Sold as ingredient ingredients to UK retailers and food service operators.
• Leaf vegetables Mature lettuce and leaf varieties including Red Salanova, Red Multileaf, Radicchio, Lollo Rosso, Bulls Blood, Chinese Leaf, Iceberg, Escarole, Apollo and Coarse Endive. Supplied to UK retailers and food service operators for ingredient or whole-head use.
• Fresh vegetables (whole and prepared) Whole and prepared vegetables including Cherry Tomatoes, Carrots, Peppers, Cabbage, Red Chard, Tomatoes, Beetroot, Cucumber, Red Onion, White Onion, Cos and Pea Shoots, plus prepared formats such as diced peppers, shredded and julienne carrot and beetroot, and coleslaw mixes. Sold to UK retailers and food service operators.
• Multi-ingredient salad mixes
• Multi-ingredient salad mixes Washed ready-to-eat mixed salads combining 5, 6 or 7 different ingredients including iceberg and other leaf bases with vegetables, herbs and dressings. Supplied to UK retailers and food service operators.

Quantifiable outcome

• 23 tonnes of food donated to 1,053 charities in 2023
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FareSharecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnership with FareShare, the UK's largest food redistribution charity, to combat food waste and divert surplus food to frontline charities and community groups. In 2023, 23 tonnes of food donated to 1,053 charities, equivalent to 54,000 meals.
• LEAFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAgrial Fresh Produce is a member of LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) and works to support sustainable food, agriculture and farming throughout their supply chain. LEAF Marque certification is part of their sustainable sourcing standards.
• Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)coreOthersAgrial Fresh Produce has committed to reducing absolute Scope 1 & 2 GHG emissions by 48% and Scope 3 emissions by 27% by 2035 from a 2019 base year. This commitment has been verified by the Science Based Targets Initiative.
• Gangmasters Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking in partnership with the GLAA to support growers and employees throughout the supply chain to minimise the risk of exploitation. GLAA is a UK government agency tackling labour exploitation.
• Association of Labour Providers (ALP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with ALP to support growers and employees throughout the supply chain and minimise exploitation risks.
• Stronger TogethercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAgrial Fresh Produce has received Partner Status from Stronger Together, highlighting their commitment to addressing the risks of modern slavery in their business. Also recognised at the Responsible Recruitment & Stronger Together Awards.
• Grocery AidminorOthersPartnership with Grocery Aid, a UK organisation providing financial, emotional, and practical support to grocery industry employees. Agrial Fresh Produce won a GOLD Grocery Aid Award for outstanding support in 2023.
• Wigan Youth ZoneminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWigan site works closely with the local Wigan Youth Zone charity. Employees participate in fundraising events and the company sponsors charitable activities.
• Lindsey Lodge HospiceminorOthersScunthorpe site supports Lindsey Lodge hospice as a local charity, participating in fundraising events and sponsorship.
• St Giles HospiceminorOthersLichfield site supports St Giles Hospice as a local charity, participating in fundraising events and sponsorship.
• The Brick (Wigan)minorOthersWigan site supports The Brick (Wigan) as a local charity working to combat poverty and homelessness, participating in fundraising events.
• Fur Clemt (Wigan Food Bank)minorOthersFur Clemt ('really hungry' in Wigan dialect) is a local food bank with a subsidised cafe. Agrial Fresh Produce sends an average of a volunteer per week and has developed an ongoing relationship with them.
• Global GAPcoreOthersAll primary suppliers are required to be accredited by Global GAP as a minimum standard, ensuring adherence to sustainable agricultural and good manufacturing practice. Agrial Fresh Produce is audited to Global GAP standards.
• Red TractorcoreOthersAll primary produce suppliers must be accredited by Red Tractor or equivalent standards, ensuring adherence to sustainable agricultural practice. Part of Agrial's robust supplier approval process.
• BRC (British Retail Consortium)coreOthersAll primary suppliers must be BRC certified where applicable. Agrial holds BRC AA+ (unannounced) certification for food safety and quality management at their production facilities.
• SedexcoreOthersAll primary suppliers are SEDEX registered and the company conducts continuous risk assessments and ethical audits to ensure suppliers' ethical stance is aligned with theirs. Audits compliance against their code of practice in line with Sedex standards.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Taylor Farms: Taylor Farms is the largest producer of fresh-cut salads and vegetables in North America. While primarily US-focused, it is a relevant broad incumbent in the value-added fresh produce category, demonstrating scale economics and category leadership that benchmarks against Florette's UK #1 position.
• Dole plc: Dole is a global fresh produce leader with growing presence in fresh-cut salads, packaged salads, and value-added produce. It is a broad incumbent comparable on category breadth and retail distribution muscle, though its primary scale is in fresh whole fruit and vegetables.
• Fresh Express (Chiquita Brands): Fresh Express is the leading branded fresh salads producer in the United States. It is a broad incumbent comparable on product category (bagged/washed salads) and processing technology, and serves as a global benchmark for Florette's branded strategy.
• Bonduelle Group: Bonduelle is a France-headquartered global leader in fresh and processed vegetables (canned, frozen, fresh-cut). It is a broad incumbent with UK retail presence in ready-to-eat salads and prepared vegetables, offering overlapping capabilities from a much larger portfolio.

Direct peers

• Bakkavor Group: Bakkavor is the UK's largest provider of fresh prepared foods (salads, sandwiches, ready meals, pizza) supplying major grocers. It is the most directly comparable UK-listed peer to Agrial Fresh Produce, competing in the same fresh-cut/value-added produce category with similar retailer relationships and BRC-driven operating model.
• Greencore Group: Greencore is a major UK and Irish convenience food manufacturer supplying prepared salads, sandwiches and chilled meals to retailers. Its food-to-go and prepared produce lines overlap directly with Agrial's Florette range, and it shares the same UK supermarket customer base.
• Fresca Group: Fresca Group is a UK-based vertically integrated fresh produce supplier growing, packing, and distributing fresh salads and vegetables to retailers and food service operators. It competes directly with Agrial in the bagged and prepared salad category in the UK.
• G's Fresh: G's Fresh is one of the UK's largest fresh produce growers and suppliers, producing salads, vegetables, and other fresh items. It operates a vertically integrated grower-processor model that competes with Agrial across both raw and prepared fresh produce lines.
• Nature's Way Foods: Nature's Way Foods is a UK-based prepared salads and fresh convenience foods supplier to major retailers including Marks & Spencer. It is a direct head-to-head competitor in the bagged salad and prepared vegetable category.

Regional players

• Berry Gardens: Berry Gardens is a UK grower-owned cooperative marketing berries and soft fruit. It is comparable on the cooperative ownership model and grower-stakeholder structure that defines Agrial Fresh Produce, though it operates in a different fresh produce sub-category.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/agrial-fresh-produce-ltd
• Xx.com/agrialfpwigan
• Facebookfacebook.com/AgrialFreshFarmsUK

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Agrial Fresh Produce