RIVERFORD, based just outside Peterborough at Sacrewell Farm was last night announced a winner at the RSPCA Good Business Awards, in the Independent Food Retailer category.

The award was presented at a ceremony held at London’s One Marylebone, alongside accolades for pubs, restaurants, caterers, supermarkets and fashion businesses who are going the extra mile for animal welfare.

The awards are run annually by the RSPCA and aim to highlight those companies in the UK who are going the extra mile or doing something different for animal welfare.

The organic home delivery company beat off competition from Daylesford Farm Shop, Edge & Son, The Ginger Pig, JW Metterick & Son and The Welsh Farmyard.

Guy Watson, Riverford founder said, “We are genuinely thrilled to have won this award, as it highlights the lengths we go to ensure that the meat, milk and eggs we sell are as ethically produced as the veg we grow. We want to make it as simple as possible for people to buy good food that is produced with respect, by making information about the journey it has made to their plate as available and as transparent as possible. Gaining recognition of this from the RSPCA will help us enormously in spreading the word about what we do, so we’re delighted.”

The judges were particularly impressed by the way Riverford communicates its animal welfare story to customers through its newsletters and social media, such as its hit YouTube video ‘Bucking Bovines’, which has had over 26,000 viewings of the Riverford dairy herd running out to pasture. It was also praised for its ‘meat and 10 veg’ campaign, which encourages customers to eat better quality meat, but less often, to help reduce the demand for intensively reared meat.

To find out more about Riverford meat and veg please visit www.riverford.co.uk/sacrewell