At a time of growing uncertainty and declining business and consumer confidence, most businesses would find it difficult to achieve significant growth.
This is especially true in the food sector, which has been beset by a range of challenges stemming from repeated geopolitical crises, with little sign of an end.
Free-range egg producer St Ewe is very much bucking this trend however; clearly illustrating that, despite difficult economic circumstances, companies that get it right can thrive.
The Cornwall-based firm is currently ranked among the top 50 fastest-growing private companies according to The Sunday Times, with sales nearly doubling in the last financial year, rising 95.7% to £51.7 million. The business has also posted average annual sales growth of 88% over the past three years.
So what’s the secret to the brand’s runaway success amid a complicated economic landscape?
Laying down a marker
St Ewe primarily sets itself apart through innovation. Just a few weeks ago, for example, the brand ventured into the liquid egg category, developing a new range specifically for professional kitchens.
Founded less than 20 years ago by Rebecca Tonks and built around her family’s farming business - which has operated since the 1960s - today, St Ewe has firmly established itself as one of the UK’s leading challenger food brands.
Exclusively producing free-range eggs, the firm maintains a clear focus on its core values of hen welfare and product quality.
Tonks believes the brand’s dramatic upturn in fortunes over the past few years has come from questioning sector conventions and building a distinctive voice.
“We like to approach things differently. Rules are just guidelines,” Tonks explains.
“It’s about spotting opportunities, bringing something different to life and recognising when change is needed.
“We’ve also been incredibly fortunate to have an amazing team and great people around us who have helped elevate the business and give us a distinctive voice.”
As noted, the business’ recent growth figures have been striking. This has been driven not only by the brand’s clear, value-led identity, but also by growing consumer demand for higher-quality eggs from healthy, well-cared-for hens.
St Ewe has been well positioned to meet that demand at a time when larger producers are facing increasing scrutiny over the use of intensive egg production systems and caged hens.
Creating certainty in an uncertain world
St Ewe’s recent success comes at a time of significant instability for the global economy and the British and European food industries in particular.
UK food supply chain security is arguably more under threat now than at any time since the end of rationing in the mid-1950s, with the Ukraine war and the joint US-Israeli intervention in Iran proving nothing short of catastrophic for international markets.
And that is why companies like St Ewe have a vital role to play in the national economy. British food manufacturers producing British products on British soil are essential to ensuring security of supply for the domestic market.
After all, who knows what another concerted blockade of the Strait of Hormuz might do to food imports? Or what another phase of Russian aggression could mean for global supply chains?
This instability is why Tonks urges the UK Government to take concrete steps now to ensure future food security.
She points out that the supply chain has been under threat for some time and that serious, concerted investment is needed to reverse the situation.
“I don’t think it’s just the Middle East conflict that has exposed the issue. The UK’s food security situation has been in an appalling state for quite some time. All we can do is help educate whichever government is in power about how important food is.
“We’re also a very capable group of farmers in the UK. We have an incredible ability to produce much more food, but we need to invest in technology to improve production. The UK is well placed to achieve that, but what we need most is confidence. Confidence is the currency behind everything in British farming.”
What does the future hold?
Despite all the doom and gloom surrounding the UK food industry at the moment, Tonks strikes a positive tone when discussing the future of British farming.
Recognising that the sector has been suffering for some time, even before the international conflicts that have dominated the 2020s, she believes that farmers deserve far more public recognition.
As a farmer herself, she points out that the profession is indispensable to the British economy and society at large – after all, a nation has to be fed.
British farmers are highly skilled, Tonks says, but clear policy support is needed from government to inspire confidence in the current generation and encourage the next.
“I’m always optimistic. That’s essential when you’re running a business. Farmers produce food, and people will always need food more than they need another mobile phone app. We need to help the UK understand where its priorities should lie.
“Around 2% of the population farms the land, and they’re very good at what they do. They deserve more recognition and greater confidence in their future. There are plenty of young people who want to enter farming, but they need to believe there’s a future in it. UK food has so much to offer, and that needs to be recognised.”
St Ewe has also invested heavily in sustainability and technology to ensure it remains viable over the coming decades, Tonks says.
In combination with financial assistance from government, investment in staff training, new technologies and AI adoption must be a key focus for the farms of the future, alongside a concerted effort to reduce carbon emissions and safeguard the environment on which food production depends.
“People often assume sustainability is only about the environment, but for us it starts with the farmer. If the farmer is in a good place, what’s produced on that farm will be too. We’ve invested heavily in training our teams to support farmers.
Tonks adds: “Looking ahead, it’s about combining great farmers, great equipment and technologies such as artificial intelligence to improve productivity while reducing carbon emissions. None of this will happen overnight, but if everyone does their bit, the industry can make significant progress.”
With the advent of yet another new prime minister, it’ll be interesting to see what, if anything, Andy Burnham does in the early part of his tenure to help ease the burdens placed on farmers.
After all, if Britain ever wants become truly self-sufficient, or at the very least make strides in that regard – it must support, uplift and secure the farming industry long-term.
Going into an increasingly volatile 21st century – it is simply indispensable for our security.
