Northern Foods Rural Action Award

Northern Foods Rural Action Award - For companies who support rural communities

Sourcing the best of British has always been important for Northern Foods so we are proud to sponsor the Rural Action Award...

The closing date for this category has now passed.

The aim of the Northern Foods Rural Action Award is to recognise and reward companies that are helping to address issues faced by rural communities in order to maintain a vibrant, sustainable rural economy.

The unprecedented scale and speed of change impacting on Britain’s rural areas is having a profound effect.  There are many social, economic and environmental pressures in our countryside, including

• Decline in farm income threatening security of supply and increased pressures on farmers to improve their
• environmental management; 
• Lack of affordable housing for local people due to an influx of affluent commuters and resulting exodus of young people;
• Decline of basic services such as access to transport, retail and banking facilities, schools, doctors and dentists surgeries, and broadband. 

By raising the awareness of rural issues, we can bring about positive change in these areas. The Prince’s Rural Action Programme works in partnership with business and other stakeholders to find solutions to some of the challenges facing rural areas.

Many companies are having a positive impact in rural areas. Previous winners of the Rural Action Award for Excellence include:

• Riverford Organic for developing a profitable model of vegetable production and distribution that secures an alternative route to market for small scale producers;
• Northern Rail for their innovative approach to transport and services, 
• Booths and Waitrose for supporting local farmers and suppliers; 
• BHP Billiton for their environmental stewardship in a small Welsh community, and; 
• HSBC for their support for women setting up their own business.

Does your company make a positive impact in a rural area?

Whether you support enterprise or the provision of services to rural areas, work with farmers or use suppliers that operate in rural areas, we encourage you to come forward and tell your story.

Whether your impact is economic, social or environmental, we are looking to share your success and highlight organisations like yours that make a real difference to the prosperity of our rural communities.

"Sourcing the best of British has always been important for Northern Foods so we are proud to sponsor the Rural Action Award which recognises the rich contribution that rural communities can make to Britain's economy and which celebrates some of the outstanding initiatives within the business world which have helped Britain's rural communities prosper."
Stefan Barden, Chief Executive, Northern Foods