Waitrose is starting Organic Fortnight celebrations early this year, with the announcement that it stole the show at the recent Soil Association Organic Food Awards, picking up more accolades than any other retailer.

The supermarket received 10 gongs overall, including a silver award for its sun ripened tomatoes, and bronzes for its Crimini mushrooms and mushroom grill.

Spokesman for Waitrose, Graham Cassie, said: “Waitrose is delighted to be so well recognised and rewarded by the Soil Association. Our success at this year’s Organic Food Awards is indicative of our long-term commitment to provide customers with a quality organic choice.

“Our newly launched organic offering, which now includes 1,500 products including many award winning lines, allows customers the choice to shop 100 per cent organically, which also reinforces our ongoing dedication to the organic movement.”

Despite representing less than four per cent of the total UK grocery market, Waitrose punches above its weight in the organic market, representing 17 per cent of all organic grocery sales.

Waitrose prides itself on being one of the oldest retailers of organic produce, with some suppliers still on its books after more than 20 years.

In that time, Waitrose’s organic fresh produce section has grown from representing one per cent to 12 per cent of total fresh produce sales.

Local sourcing is also another priority, according to the chain, with 60 per cent of its vegetables produced in the UK.

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