A family-owned farming business working with Woolworths since 1974 - Australian Strawberry Distributors - has been named Woolworths Fruit and Veg Trade Partner of the Year.
Last week, Woolworths hosted its annual awards ceremony to celebrate the achievements and contributions of its many trade partners who work closely with Woolworths year-round to enhance the customer shopping experience and deliver innovation in their fields.
Australian Strawberry Distributors has been a leader in adopting innovative growing techniques like protective cropping. Their dedication to trialing new strawberry varieties ensures a consistently high-quality product for Woolworths customers year-round, while also improving the reliability of supply.
"It's fantastic to see Australian Strawberry Distributors, a valued partner of over 50 years, receive this recognition," said Woolworths Chief Commercial Officer, Paul Harker.
"Their dedication to our shared customers is truly commendable. They embody what it means to be a true partner, working closely with us to understand our customers and innovate within the category. This collaborative approach has been instrumental in bringing exciting new fresh produce varieties to market."
Australian Strawberry Distributors Managing Director Jim Ripepi said: "We were surprised to be nominated and surprised to win it in the end! A big thank you to the family back home, who are behind all the hard work. We've been a supplier of Woolworths for many years and never thought we'd get up here but we finally did. It's unbelievable."
"We work very closely with Woolworths and have done so for a long time. They're a great trading partner of ours and that's based on a lot of trust, from both sides. We're proud to be a supplier of Woolworths."
The Woolworths Trade Partner of the Year Awards recognized partners across 12 categories:
- Overall Trade Partner of the Year: Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
- Account Manager of the Year: Amanda Barnes - MCo Beauty
- Better Tomorrow Award: Baiada
- Chilled & Bakery Trade Partner of the Year: True Foods
- Everyday Needs Trade Partner of the Year: Unilever
- Fruit & Veg Trade Partner of the Year: Australian Strawberry Distributors
- Grocery Food Trade Partner of the Year: Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
- Meat & Seafood Trade Partner of the Year: Hilton Foods
- Merchandising Team of the Year: Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
- New Product Launch of the Year: Mr Beast Feastables
- Trade Partner of the Year <$50m: Hismile
- Woolworths Category Manager of the Year: Matthew Teggins - Drinks
For more information:
Woolworths Group
Tel: +61 02 8885 0000
www.woolworthsgroup.com.au