River Swale Organic prepares to come on stream in 2007

Organic vegetable box franchise Riverford Organic is making available 15 new franchise territories in the North East.

Franchisees of River Swale Organic will start delivering quality local produce in February 2007 and signs of a swift take up are indicated by the fact that two of the new areas, York and Newcastle, were secured pre-launch by people who have been waiting for up to a year for the new territories to come on stream.

The new River Swale territories are part of Riverford Organic Vegetables' drive to deliver locally produced organic vegetables through a network of partner farms.

'River Swale follows on from River Nene, which we set up nearly two years ago,' says Franchise Manager Ian Bradley. 'River Nene has exceeded our expectations and we feel that the prospects for River Swale are equally good.

'Quality produce picked one day and supplied direct to the customer's doorstep the next is the fundamental aim of all our farms. Riverford, Nene and Swale all share IT and a proven franchising model, but otherwise they do things the way that suits people in their area best.'

The 15 new River Swale franchisees will enjoy the same package as the 75 existing Riverford and River Nene franchises who are already operating throughout the Midlands and the south of England.