A self-confessed 'veg nerd' has marked a successful first year since he gave up a high-flying marketing job to found an organic produce business.

Nick Kington swapped his home in Reading to move to Bury St Edmunds, and is now supplying more than 350 boxes of fresh vegetables, fruit, dairy and meat to customers every week.

'It was a pretty drastic change, but the time to break free from 9-to-5 office and urban life felt right,' he said.

'It's not always been smooth sailing but the highs far outweigh the lows. I'm so grateful to all my customers for giving me such a warm welcome.'

Mr Kington runs a Riverford franchise, and sources his produce from its farms and network of local organic farmers.

With the awareness-raising Organic September month drawing to a close – predicted by organisers from the Soil Association to have been the biggest yet – Mr Kington wants others to learn about organic produce.

'I was a Riverford customer long before I ever thought about becoming a franchisee,' he said. 'I do the majority of the cooking in our house and have always valued high quality ingredients grown with nature rather than against it. I'm keen to help people understand how their food is produced and the impact of the different options.'