Charltons

What Charltons does

Charltons is a fourth-generation, family-owned fruit farming business founded in 1946 by George Charlton, operating as Rumwood Green Farm Ltd in England. The company grows apples (Gala and Magic Star varieties), strawberries, raspberries, and cherries across approximately 560 hectares split between Kent (Rumwood Green Farm, Maidstone) and Norfolk (Spring Farm, Hempnall, acquired in 2020). Production combines heated glasshouses, polytunnels, Cravo retractable-roof tunnels, and outdoor orchards, with a trial site evaluating 150 strawberry variety selections to extend the commercial season.

The business is built around capital-intensive agricultural infrastructure: four biomass boilers fuelled by wood-chips, a near-10,000-square-metre solar photovoltaic array, 20 hectares of reservoirs holding 90 million gallons of water, and a fully automated packhouse with robotic infeed capable of handling approximately 200 million packs annually. The packhouse operates 364 days per year, with intake capacity for up to 5,500 pallets or 3,400 bins of apples and equipment including twin-lane heat-sealing machines, check weighers, and metal detectors. 11% of farmed hectares are set aside for conservation. Magic Star apples can be stored for up to 52 weeks, enabling a year-round apple supply program.

Charltons operates as a B2B fresh-produce supplier, selling to multiple leading UK retailers through its producer organisation and marketing desks rather than directly to consumers. Revenue is generated from selling its own apples, strawberries, raspberries, and cherries, supplemented by packing and storage services for top, soft, and stone fruits from both overseas and UK growers. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The company is privately held with no identified external investors, parent company, or public listing, and remains under family ownership four generations after founding.

Name

Charltons

Legal name

Rumwood Green Farm Ltd

Website

https://charltonsfarms.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Charltons is a fourth-generation family-owned fruit farming business founded in 1946, growing apples, strawberries, raspberries, and cherries across 560 hectares in Kent and Norfolk, England, supplying multiple leading UK retailers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fresh Fruit Production

NAICS

Strawberry Farming (111333), Berry (except Strawberry) Farming (111334), Fruit and Tree Nut Farming (1113)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Berry Farming (Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, Cranberries) (AFAGACAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pome Fruit Orchards (Apples, Pears, Quinces) (AFAGACAB), Stone Fruit Orchards (Peaches, Nectarines, Plums, Cherries, Apricots) (AFAGACAC), Greenhouse Fruit & Berry Production (Strawberries, Specialty Fruits) (AFAGAHAB), Berry Sorting & Packing Facilities (AFAOAGAD)

Keywords

• Fresh fruit production
• Apple farming
• Berry cultivation
• Produce packing services
• Sustainable agriculture

Headquarters

HQ city

Maidstone

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Fresh produce sales: Growing and selling apples, strawberries, raspberries and cherries to multiple leading UK retailers through their producer organisation and marketing desks. Also packing and storing produce from both overseas and UK growers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Charltons grows, packs, and stores apples (Gala and Magic Star), strawberries, raspberries, and cherries across approximately 560 hectares across Kent and Norfolk in the UK. The produce is supplied to multiple leading UK retailers through producer organisations and marketing desks, with packhouse operations capable of high-volume grading and packing.

Product overview

Charltons is a fourth-generation family fruit farming business founded in 1946, growing apples (Gala and Magic Star varieties), strawberries, raspberries, and cherries across approximately 560 hectares in Kent and Norfolk. The company operates heated glasshouses and polytunnels for year-round berry production, along with state-of-the-art packing facilities capable of handling 200 million packs annually. Charltons provides produce to leading UK retailers through their producer organisation and marketing desks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gala Apples Commercial apple variety grown on Charltons farms in Kent and Norfolk and supplied to UK retailers through producer organisations and marketing desks.
• Magic Star Apples Branded apple variety grown at scale by Charltons and supplied to UK retailers; positioned as a key supply item for retail programmes.
• Strawberries Fresh strawberries grown under Cravo retractable roof houses with drip irrigation, supplied year-round to UK retailers.
• Raspberries Fresh raspberries grown under protected cultivation and supplied to UK retailers as part of Charltons' year-round berry offering.
• Cherries Fresh cherries grown on Charltons farms in Kent and Norfolk and supplied to UK retailers.
• Fruit Packing Services Automated packhouse service operating five packing lines to grade, sort, and pack fresh fruit to retail specification for UK retailer customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 52-week apple supply capability through Magic Star variety storage
• +3 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Newmafruit Farms: UK apple and pear grower-packer supplying UK retailers with top fruit from Kent and other growing regions. Directly comparable to Charltons' 220-hectare apple operation in terms of crop type, UK retail customer base and packhouse activities.
• AC Hulme & Sons: Kent-based top-fruit grower specialising in apples, pears and cherries for UK retailers. Closely comparable to Charltons' pome and stone fruit operations in Kent, with similar outdoor orchard production model and UK supermarket customer base.

Direct peers

• Angus Soft Fruits: Scottish-based soft-fruit grower and marketer producing strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and cherries for UK retailers. Comparable to Charltons in multi-berry crop mix, varietal R&D focus and B2B retail supply model.
• Hall Hunter Partnership: One of the UK's largest soft-fruit growers, supplying strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries to UK retailers including Waitrose, M&S and Tesco. Closely comparable to Charltons in scale, glasshouse/polytunnel production mix and B2B UK retail go-to-market.
• Berry Gardens (MG Produce): UK berry producer cooperative supplying major UK retailers with strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries. Direct competitor to Charltons in B2B berry supply to UK supermarkets, with comparable grower-marketing-desk distribution model.
• Hugh Lowe Farms: Large Kent-based soft-fruit grower specialising in strawberries, raspberries and blackberries for UK retailers. Operates a similar heated glasshouse and field production model to Charltons and is a direct competitor in the UK berry market.

Broad incumbents

• Tiptree (Wilkin & Sons): Long-established Essex-based fruit grower and preserve maker growing strawberries, raspberries, cherries and other fruits. Comparable to Charltons in heritage, multi-fruit farming and UK retail presence, though Wilkin & Sons is vertically integrated into jam/preserve manufacturing rather than primarily fresh produce.
• Driscoll's: Global leader in berry production and marketing with significant UK and European berry operations. Competes with Charltons in strawberries and raspberries supplied to UK retailers, but at much larger global scale and as a branded marketer rather than regional grower.

Emerging players

• BerryWorld: UK-based soft-fruit marketing company sourcing and supplying proprietary berry varieties to UK and European retailers. Comparable to Charltons in the B2B UK soft-fruit supply chain and varietal differentiation, though BerryWorld operates as a marketer-marketer rather than a primary grower of Charltons' scale.

Others

• Fruit Growers (Berry & Top Fruit) Cooperative-style UK packers: UK-based fresh produce packing and storage service providers who handle top and soft fruit from multiple growers. Comparable to Charltons' third-party packing operations, which also pack and store produce from other UK and overseas growers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/rumwoodgreenfarm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rumwood-green-farm-ltd
• Instagraminstagram.com/charltonsrgf

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Charltons