LATEST NEWS
The following news articles have featured in our local press and trade publications.
J.R. HOLLAND SERVES CHRISTMAS DINNER AROUND THE STABLE
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of JR Holland Food Services and Susan Tron from Stepney Banks Stables serve up a festive treat.
Horses at Stepney Bank are gathering around the stable this festive season to enjoy a traditional Christmas dinner courtesy of J.R. Holland Food Services.
The North East food service provider has been delivering free fruit and vegetables to the community stables since March 2009 and as a special seasonal treat, Stepney Bank’s 25 working horses will be enjoying a very special Christmas lunch consisting of carrots, parsnips, broccoli and turnips.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services comments: “Christmas is the time of goodwill and as the horses at Stepney Bank Stables work so hard throughout the year it’s only right that they get a reward for all the joy they bring to the community by joining in the festive spirit and indulging in a good old fashion Christmas dinner.”
Based in Newcastle’s Ouseburn Valley, Stepney Bank Stables is a charitable organisation in which horses are used to motivate, educate and pass on key social skills to disadvantaged and hard to reach groups.
As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy J.R. Holland Food Services supports the project with weekly fresh produce donations which help to care of the animals that are used to reach out and engage the local community.
Stepney Bank is one of three CSR initiatives supported by J.R. Holland Food Services including Children North East where it supports several projects throughout the region and Clarence’s Community Farm in Stockton.
A group of local fruit and vegetable growers have collaborated under the name of ‘Northumbrian Fields’ to provide J.R. Holland Food Services with locally grown produce including potatoes, strawberries, broccoli, carrots and other vegetables.
As the major supplier of fresh produce to independent retailers, restaurant owners and local authorities including schools and councils in the region, J.R. Holland Food Services has a strong policy to source locally wherever possible but has struggled to meet the sheer volume of produce needed from local growers alone.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services comments; “As a business which operates in the North East, we want to support local farms and independent growers in our region and at the same time provide our customers with the best quality locally sourced produce.
“There are numerous benefits to local sourcing including savings on food miles and economic support to our region, yet the quality of produce we offer and the ability to meet customer demands also has to be high on our agenda. We are very pleased to have strengthened our relationship with Northumbrian Fields which overcomes the issues we have faced in the past when it comes to identifying and co-ordinating enough local growers to meet our demands.”
The Northumbrian Fields collaboration has been spearheaded by Nick Craigs, Director of J Craigs Ltd at Tritlington Hall Farm, Morpeth who has identified a network of other growers in the region to unite with, enabling the group to come together under one name in order to supply J.R. Holland Food Services.
Exclusively devised and delivered to J.R. Holland Food Services ‘Northumbrian Fields’ now has its own brand identity which will be used on all locally sourced produce that is delivered to J.R. Holland customers.
CHILDRENS CHARITY ON ITS WAY TO FIVE A DAY THANKS TO JR HOLLAND FOOD SERVICES
As part of it’s rolling CSR policy which includes in-kind fruit and vegetable donations to inner city projects around the region, J.R. Holland Food Services has signed up to deliver free fresh fruit and vegetables to the region’s oldest children’s charity - Children North East.
Children North East run a variety of projects across the region with the aim of supporting children, teens and families through difficult times, enabling them to move forward and reach their full potential.
As a firm supporter of the 5 a day initiative, J.R. Holland understands how important it is for growing children to have fruit and vegetables in their daily diet. To ensure underprivileged children, teens and families that are supported by Children North East have access to fresh produce; J.R. Holland food services is delivering weekly donations of fresh fruit and vegetables to various Children North East projects around the region.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services comments: “J.R. Holland’s heritage and its future lie within the North East and we have established ourselves as the leading food service provider in the region. As an ethical business we place a high importance on giving back to the community in which we operate.”
Children North East is the latest project to benefit from J.R. Holland Food Services’ Corporate Social Responsibility policy which already includes two local community projects, Stepney Bank Stables in Newcastle and Clarence’s Community Farm in Stockton.
Carol Taylor, Senior Fundraiser for Children North East said:
“Many of the children that we support do not have the opportunity to be educated about healthy eating or the means to have fresh fruit and vegetables in their diet. In fact, many of the children that come to our projects do not know the name of exotic fruits like a pineapple, let alone have an idea of what one looks like.
“We work to educate children and their families regarding all aspects of health and well being as well as provide emotional and practical support. The weekly donations we receive from J.R. Holland Food Services are helping to improve the lives of local children and we are very thankful for their support.”
Local Food Company Supplies Smiles This Halloween
J.R. Holland Food Services is bringing a smile to children’s faces this Halloween with a delivery of pumpkins for kids to carve their horrifying creations into as we approach the spooktacular celebration of All Hallows Eve.
The pumpkins, all of which are donated by J.R. Holland Food Services are being used in a special Halloween workshop held by local charity Children North East at one of their many projects around the region that supports children, young people and their families.
Face painting, pumpkin carving and Halloween cooking (using none other than pumpkin of course) are all part of the itinerary at the workshop which is taking place at Children North East’s Families Plus Project at Hill Court in Newcastle City Centre.
The workshop is just one of the activities organised by Children North East which are designed to bring some fun and enjoyment to underprivileged children and families in the local area.
Carol Taylor, Senior Fundraiser at the charity comments:
“Simple activities such as a Halloween workshop can provide a sense of normality and quality family time to what can often be a very chaotic and underprivileged home life. We are very thankful for the support we receive from companies like J.R. Holland Food Services who are helping Children North East to make better lives for local children.”
As a major supplier of fresh produce throughout the North East, J.R. Holland Food Services prides itself on supporting the local community with in-kind donations such as this.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services said: “As a local business, we feel that it is very important to give back to, and support the local community in which we operate.
“As such we have a number of projects we support with in-kind donations across the region including Stepney Banks Stables in Byker and Clarence’s Community Farm in Stockton. It is a privilege to be able to help a local children’s charity such as Children North East and we will continue to do so with future projects.”
For further information on JR Holland Food Services or Children North East please visit: www.jrhollandfoodservices.com / www.children-ne.orgLocal Food Firm Thinks North East First
Local Food Firm Calls Out For Local Growers
JR Holland Food Services, a leading North East food service provider is collaborating with a series of local farms and growers in the region to ensure fresh produce is sourced locally for its expanding client list.
Dennis Hutchinson and Nick Craigs.
As the official supplier to many of the regions Local Authorities which include schools and councils, as well as numerous private businesses J.R. Holland Food Services prides itself on being able to supply quality and locally sourced products, lending its support to smaller farms and independent growers in the region.
The most recent supplier to J.R. Holland Food Services comes in the shape of J Craigs Limited, at Tritlington Hall Farm in Morpeth. The mutually beneficial relationship, which has been some two months in the making, has gone from strength to strength allowing J.R. Holland Food Services to provide locally sourced produce whilst offering J Craigs Limited an exceptional distribution network.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services, said:
“As a major supplier of fresh produce we feel it’s important that we tap into local resources and support the region’s economy. The North East has a rich farming heritage and there are numerous benefits of sourcing locally. For instance, J Craigs Limited is able to offer strawberries that are actually picked on the same day as we receive them and this in turn this allows a longer shelf life for our customers and ensures produce reaches them in peak condition and the freshest state possible.
“At the top of our CSR agenda is of course the environment and sourcing locally also allows us to reduce food miles, meaning less carbon emissions which greatly benefits the environment whilst also reducing fuel costs. We are doing everything possible to source local, and are always on the lookout for new suppliers”.
With a policy of supporting its region, J.R. Holland Food Services has strengthened links with local farmers to ensure the best of the regions fresh produce finds itself on dinner plates around the North East. The new Local section of the J.R. Holland website allows customers to see exactly where produce is being sourced and includes links to supplier’s websites for accountability and traceability purposes.
The site also includes a call out to local growers to nominate themselves as a potential J.R. Holland supplier in order for the company to maintain its ‘buy local’ policy.
Nick Craigs, Vegetable Grower and Director of J Craigs Limited, commented:
“Some time ago we were approached by local authorities to provide fresh fruit and vegetables from our farm; however we did not have a distribution network to achieve this. JR Holland Food Services solved this problem with its excellent client list allowing our produce to be distributed across the entire region from niche restaurants to schools.
“Now our strawberries, broccoli, spring greens, carrots and other vegetables that grow locally are also consumed locally, supporting the economy and putting the north east on the map when it comes to quality produce.”
Based at Tritlington Hall Farm, Morpeth, and operating for over 20 years, J Craigs Limited offer a variety of fresh produce to a variety of wholesale markets, farmers markets and farm shops including Moorhouse and Blagdon Farm Shop.
For further information or to nominate yourself as a local supplier please visit: www.jrholland.co.uk
TRAINING: INVEST TO IMPRESS
JR Holland Food Services implement company wide training scheme
Jim Hamel, Managing Director of Team Train Ltd. with staff from JR Holland.
Team Valley based J.R Holland Food Services has implemented a new company wide training scheme that has seen every one of its 70 staff members gain an NVQ level 2 qualification in the past twelve months.
The training initiative is part of J.R. Holland Food Services’ continuous development commitment and sits alongside the mandatory induction training, delivered to staff members upon joining the company.
The business, which supplies fresh produce to local authorities and private organisations throughout the region, has developed its training programme in partnership with local training provider TeamTrain Ltd.
NVQ Level 2 training has been delivered to all staff within the company including drivers, administrative staff and warehouse staff with the aim of providing enough support for employees to realise their potential and enable them to rise through the ranks of the business, whilst improving efficiency and maintaining the very highest standards of service to its customers.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services comments:
“Very few businesses make the bold move of investing in company wide training as it is often seen as too time consuming and disruptive. Our staff are at the heart of our business and they can not be overlooked as an area for investment.
“We pride ourselves on our outstanding service and this can only be achieved through supporting staff and aiding them to deliver the very highest standards to our customers”.
An awards ceremony will be held in Gateshead this month where all staff will be formally presented with their official training certificates from either NVQ level 2 Customer Service, Driving Goods Vehicles or Warehousing and Storage.
Jim Hamel, Managing Director of Team Train Ltd said: “J.R. Holland is a company that places great emphasis on staff development. There are many crossovers in staff roles and due to this bespoke training programmes were developed for the team. As all drivers, have a customer facing role, it was important that they also received customer service training for example.
“As such we worked closely with them to offer a training package that covered a number of areas to meet the exact requirements of the company. It is this level of commitment to its staff that has enabled J.R. Holland Food Services to maintain its position as the number one food service provider in the region”.
The training programme is a continuous development initiative which will allow participate up to NVQ level 5 standard. Several staff members have already embarked on an NVQ level 3 training programme with the rest to follow in the next six weeks.Local Business Backs BRITISH TOMATO WEEK
The North East’s leading food service supplier J.R Holland Food Services is lending its support to British Tomato Week by providing all of its existing customers with the opportunity to sample British tomatoes at their best.
Paul Reay, Operations Manager receiving first delivery of British tomatoes.
Celebrating the UK’s fourth most popular fruit, the 6th annual British Tomato Week is taking place from the 18th - 24th May 2009, with the aim of raising awareness of the British grown tomato. In celebration of British produce, J.R. Holland Food Services will be ensuring all of its customers, which include schools, local authorities, universities and niche restaurants in the North East receive the best of British sourced tomatoes in a bid to encourage customers to make the switch and buy British.
With over three quarters of tomatoes now being imported into the UK, The British Tomato Growers' Association which represents 90% of commercial tomato growers in the UK aims to highlight the high quality and great taste home grown tomatoes offer. With the aim of encouraging consumers to support the local economy through buying British, the Association pushes the message that for fresh, wholesome and quality tomatoes, you need look no further than the UK.
As a strong advocate of freshly sourced and high quality produce, JR Holland Food Services has thrown its weight behind British Tomato Week, giving all its clients, including all North East based school children and university students, a chance to sample the finest fresh tomatoes from the UK.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services, said: “It’s a pleasure to be involved in supporting freshly sourced British tomatoes. With over 25 years of fresh produce heritage, we pride ourselves on our ability to locally source produce and support the British economy. The aims of British Tomato Week closely align with our values and with our established distribution network and strong customer relations, we feel that we can offer an excellent channel to market the initiative and at the same time highlight the quality and taste of British grown produce to our customers.”
Julie Wooley from the Tomato Growers Association commented: “It’s our objective to keep the popular and delicious British Tomato at the forefront of consumers’ minds. The support JR Holland Food Services is providing to this initiative has provided us with a fantastic platform to raise awareness of British produce within the North East and we are delighted that they are backing this initiative."
Based in Teams Valley Gateshead, award winning J.R Holland Food Services provides a full range of fresh produce including fruit and vegetables, prepared vegetables and potatoes, bakery, delicatessen and dairy products to a host of businesses and organisations throughout the North East of England.
For further information visit:
Substantial Savings - Minor Changes!
JR Holland Management Team.
At JR Hollands - a cross functional team from Sales to Operations, including Transport and Warehouse focused on improving the Pick process and identifying the root cause of errors.
JR Holland Food Services is a chilled Distributor of food products in the North East region. They are contracted by all twelve Local Authorities to supply fruit, vegetables and other products to schools, colleges and hospitals. It also supports a wide range of Independent Retailers, Pubs, Restaurants and Foodservice businesses across Northumberland, Tyne & Wear and Teesside.
A cross functional team from Sales to Operations, including Transport and Warehouse focussed on improving the Pick process and identifying the root cause of errors. The main improvements presented were changes to the picking process and the introduction of pre-packing and standard pack sizes to improve order picking and the reduction of delivery errors. The identified and implemented changes are being recognised in the substantial reduction in Order entry issues, Pick issues and Delivery issues along with the reduced base cost element.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director said ‘This was a worthwhile experience which was challenging and made us think about how and why we do things the way we do them! It's like a business health check - everyone should have one!'
Free fruit at Work?
J.R Holland Food Services support pioneering study
Team Valley based J.R Holland Food Services has been selected as the official provider for a brand new European study which will examine if the provision of free fruit in the workplace is a useful way to improve an employee’s health and wellbeing.
The Fruit at Work study, a first for the UK, has been developed by the Technical University of Denmark in collaboration with Newcastle University and will be taking place at Durham County Hall involving 400 of their employees.
J.R Holland has been selected for the project due to their reputation for excellent quality, service and price. As major suppliers of fruit and vegetables in the region, including all the Local Authorities in North-East England, they are very aware and in full support of workers increasing their fruit and vegetable intake.
“It is fantastic that we have been chosen as the provider for this project, we all know that fruit is fantastic for your health and wellbeing, but for one reason or another, there are a vast majority of workers who are not eating enough,” said Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R Holland Food Services.
“There are many initiatives promoting healthy eating to school children but I think sometimes employees within the workplace need a bit of reminding,” adds Dennis.
According to Charlotte Bryant, Research Nutritionist and Project Co-ordinator at Newcastle University, cost and availability are the two main reasons people do not eat enough fruit. “This project overcomes both of these problems. The idea is that if people have easy access to fruit they are less likely to reach for unhealthy snacks,” said Charlotte.
The project involves 400 employees, half of which will receive two pieces of fruit per day while the other half will receive none, before swapping halfway through. During the test period the research team will measure weight, blood pressure and waist line along with examining snacking behaviour, staff morale and overall productivity.
Charlotte comments: “Fruit and vegetables are a fantastic source of vitamins, minerals and dietary fibres, helping protect the body against chronic diseases and reducing fluctuations in blood concentrations. Our Danish counterparts seem to have the right idea, with over 60% of companies providing free fruit to their employees,”
The Fruit at Work study falls within under an EU funded project entitled ISAFRUIT, a 13.8 million euros international study involving over 300 scientists from 16 different countries.
Local business gives back
J.R Holland Food Services Support Inner City Community Project
AS part of its expanding Corporate Social Responsibility policy, J.R Holland Food Services will be rolling out a programme of in-kind contributions to community projects in the North East area.
The Team Valley based business which supplies fresh produce to local authorities and businesses throughout the region has taken on this initiative to contribute to its native North East community.
The first project to sign up to the programme is the renowned Stepney Banks Stables, a charitable organisation based in Newcastle’s Ouseburn Valley in which horses are used to motivate, educate and pass on key social skills to disadvantaged and hard to reach groups.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R Holland Food Services comments; “Our business prides itself on quality, service and price yet underlying this we have always been a very ethical company that looks after its employees as well as customers. Because of our ethos we have enjoyed great success in the region and we feel that its time to give something back.”
J.R Holland Food Services will be making a weekly delivery of fresh fruit and vegetables including apples, carrots and turnips for the 25 horses housed by Stepney Banks Stables on a continual basis. This gesture will contribute to the welfare of the horses which are currently enjoyed by the stables’ 400 regular users.
“We are very appreciative of this kind gesture” said Susan Tron, General Manager of Stepney Banks Stables. “As our horses do not have the opportunity to graze naturally it is very important that they receive fresh fruit and vegetables for sustenance in their diet so that they are healthy and well, to carry out the work they do within the community.
“It’s great to hear that a successful local company is taking the time and the effort to give back to the community and J.R Holland Food Services should be commended for their initiative.”
Clarence’s community farm recieves boost from local business
J.R Holland Food Services Signs Second Community Project to CSR Initiative
Clarence’s Community Farm located in one of the North East’s most socially deprived areas in Teesside has received a helping hand with its livestock thanks to J.R. Holland Food Services.
The inner city community farm situated in the once high crime area of Port Clarence, Middlesbrough will be receiving weekly donations of fruits, greens and root vegetables to feed the sheep, pigs, goats, rabbits, horse, and poultry that reside on the farm.
J.R Holland Food Services will be providing the weekly contributions as part of its expanding CSR policy which targets community projects in the North East area. Clarence’s Community Farm is the second project to sign up to the initiative and follows Stepney Banks Stables based in Newcastle.
“I’ve been here since the farm’s opening 18 years ago when the need for a community project such as this was identified by local residents. Port Clarence is not the most affluent of areas, and the farm gives town children the opportunity to experience rural life. We have locals as well as visitors coming through our gates, many of our staff are volunteers and we survive solely on grant funding.” said Dave Featherstone, Farm Manager.
“As we do not charge entry, the ongoing donations made by J.R. Holland are a massive help, saving the costs of our food bills by up to 20% and providing the animals with much needed nutrition. We can not express how appreciative we are of this good deed, and we urge more companies to give back to their community.”
J.R. Holland Food Services based in Team Valley, Gateshead currently supply fresh produce to a range of private businesses and local authorities across the North East of England.
Dennis Hutchinson, Managing Director of J.R. Holland Food Services comments: “We are a North East company and feel that is important to give back to the community which we have served. It’s up to businesses like ours to show our support and do what we can for the community and this is certainly a step in the right direction.
“Clarence’s Community Farm is a fantastic project which provides visitors and local residents with an educational resource, sense of community and above all, something to smile about. We are very pleased to offer our continued support to this project.”
J.R Holland Food Services are rolling out their community initiative across the North East and are looking to take on more projects in the local area.
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