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Growing demand from consumers looking for healthier food from reliable sources has driven the strongest expansion of the UK organic market in 20 years, according to vegetable box company Riverford.
The delivery firm, which also sells organic meat, cheese, cookbooks and recipe boxes, reported a 6% rise in sales to £117m in the year ending May 2025. During the same period, the UK organic food and drink market expanded by nearly 9%, based on new data from the Soil Association. This growth, well ahead of the broader food market, enabled the employee-owned business to distribute £1.1m in staff bonuses.
Rob Haward, chief executive of the Devon-based company that delivers around 70,000 boxes each week, said Riverford had attracted new customers while existing ones increased their spending. “We haven’t experienced growth at this level for two decades,” he said.
He added that the strong momentum seen in 2024 continued into last year, driven by increased focus on healthy eating and rising concern over the trustworthiness of food sources. The surge marks a recovery for the organic sector, which struggled after the financial crisis and saw growth slow during the pandemic.
Sales of organic meat performed especially well, making up about 10% of total revenue, as customers looked for dependable suppliers of high-welfare products.
Despite higher sales, operating profits fell to £3.4m from £4.7m the previous year, as the company chose to absorb some cost increases rather than pass them on to consumers. Prices rose by 3% during the year, reflecting higher wages, energy costs and additional operational pressures, including Brexit-related import paperwork for produce from France and Spain.
Haward said sales weakened slightly during last summer’s prolonged heatwave, which occurred after the financial year-end, but recovered strongly over Christmas and into the new year.
He expects sales growth to continue as the organic sector expands further. Currently, organic products account for just 2% of UK food sales, lagging behind countries such as Denmark and Germany. “There’s still plenty of catching up to do,” he said.
Looking ahead to 2026, Haward acknowledged ongoing challenges but said customer values remain clear. “People care deeply about where their food comes from, how it’s produced and who benefits,” he said.
He also noted continued inflationary pressure on suppliers from rising fuel, labour and packaging costs. While welcoming the government’s relaunch of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) in June, he warned that uncertainty over support had slowed the expansion of organic farming, potentially creating future supply shortages.
“Uncertainty is the biggest issue for farmers,” Haward said. “The faster the SFI is restored with long-term clarity, the more confidence farmers will have to invest.”
Riverford began supplying vegetables to supermarkets in 1986, before founder Guy Singh-Watson started delivering boxes directly to customers seven years later. He sold nearly 75% of the business to employees in 2018 and completed his exit in 2024 by selling his remaining 20% stake for £8.5m.
The company employs around 1,000 people, all of whom receive equal profit-sharing payments, earn at least the independently verified living wage, and take part in business decision-making. Staff received £1.3m in profit sharing the previous year.
Riverford is also investing in sustainability, with 70% of its delivery vans now electric and two electric HGVs added to its fleet. The business is involved in nature restoration projects, including woodland and wood-pasture planting on its Wash Farm and nearby supplier farms, combining tree planting with livestock grazing.
