Westlands

Westlands Nurseries are based in the Vale of Evesham providing Fresh Direct’s  customers with Speciality Tomatoes, Leaves, Edible Flowers, Micro Leaf, Tender Leaf, Samphire & Other Sea Vegetables. With over 150 product lines and 80 years of experience they provide market leading innovation and world-class produce into foodservice kitchens nationwide.  A company spokesperson commented that “We exist to inspire others in the food industry, which is why we are constantly challenging ourselves to develop new products and discover more sustainable ways of growing using the latest technologies.” All Westland products are UK grown and they are proud to be the only commercial grower of Samphire in the UK.

All produce is harvested, cooled, packed and delivered in a short time window, providing maximum freshness, longer shelf-life into the customer and reduces unnecessary processing resources.

‘Every day is an NPD day’ – Peter Taylor, General Manager.

Behind the scenes, they are constantly striving to improve and create the best fresh produce for as much of the year as is feasible without compromising on quality. Westlands work closely with Fresh Direct to continually challenge each other in maximising and championing British produce all year round. This creates an environment of innovation and reduction in food miles.

Corporate, social, and environmental responsibility is a huge part of Westland’s ethos. Westlands pride themselves in investing time into the planet, and the community. This is backed by Red Tractor, LEAF and BRC accreditations. The nurseries benefit from renewable energy, combining heat and power to generate electricity around the Evesham site and to heat the greenhouses, saving unnecessary burning of gases. Rainwater is collected from the roofs of the glasshouses and stored in an open reservoir. This is then treated to be used in the irrigation of crops. Water management systems are a high priority for Westlands. All water that has been recycled gets nutrients added for optimal crop growth. Innovation is currently underway into covered tanks to store all water for the site.