Heygate Farms Swaffham wins Potato Grower of the Year prize

Heygate Farms Swaffham won the title at the National Arable and Grasslands Awards ceremony in London.

Farms director William Gribbon said the accolade was a tribute to the efforts of his 12-strong team, the strength of the firm's Norfolk Peer and Norfolk Keepers potato brands - and a "significant investment" in sustainability.

"This is really good news for the whole team here," he said.

"The main thing I want to get across is that my team at Swaffham takes as much credit, if not more, as I do for this award.

"This is a big accolade for all of us, and any award that gives recognition to Heygate Farms Swaffham is significant.

"I think the Norfolk Peer brand is one thing that sets us apart from other people, and what we have been doing on the sustainability side as well.

The new million-gallon reservoir at Heygate Farms Swaffham - Picture: William Gribbon (Image: William Gribbon)

"We built a million-gallon reservoir to take all the rainwater off our roofs, and we are using that for irrigation.

"We also put up a 4,000-tonne cold store to save on our energy costs and reduce our food miles. That in turn has got 160kW of solar panels on the roof, which saves us money as well. 

The new 4,000-tonne cold store at Heygate Farms Swaffham - Picture: William Gribbon (Image: William Gribbon)

"We are looking at our emissions too. We are using 'Green D' diesel, which is basically made from used cooking oil, on all our machines - and that has reduced our emissions by 80pc."

The company grows 400 acres of Norfolk Peer potatoes for Tesco, and supplies 10kg boxes to restaurants and the wholesale and catering trades.

The company also grows potato crops for other customers including major processor Albert Bartlett and crisp manufacturer Kettle Foods, based at Bowthorpe near Norwich.