Guy Singh-Watson (''né'' Watson;
born 1960)
is a British farmer and founder and creator of
Riverford, an
organic farm and UK-wide organic
vegetable box delivery company.
Biography
Singh-Watson was born in
Totnes
Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and ab ...
. He was brought up on Riverford Farm, in
Buckfastleigh,
Devon
Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
, which was taken over by his family in the 1950s. After studying Agricultural and Forestry Science at the
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
he became a
management consultant
Management consulting is the practice of providing consulting services to organizations to improve their performance or in any way to assist in achieving organizational objectives. Organizations may draw upon the services of management consultant ...
, but left after working in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
for a while.
In 1986 Singh-Watson returned to the farm, deciding to convert it to farming organically. In the 1990s, to find an effective way of distributing his produce, he developed the weekly vegetable box scheme
A vegetable box scheme is an operation that delivers fresh fruit and vegetables, often locally grown and organic, either directly to the customer or to a local collection point. Typically the produce is sold as an ongoing weekly subscription and ...
, which is delivered directly to customers' doors with locally grown produce. In 2015 the Riverford business was valued at £45 million.[
In 2018 Singh-Watson sold 76% of Riverford Organic Farmers to the trustee of an employee ownership trust.] In 2023 Singh-Watson agreed to sell his remaining 23% stake for almost £10m, making the firm 100% staff-owned.
Singh-Watson lectures on ethical business and is a judge for the Observer Ethical Awards and his leadership has seen five previous Observer awards including Best Ethical Business and Best Ethical Restaurant in 2009.
Singh-Watson married Geetie Singh in 2014. He is a keen surfboarder.[ In July 2018 he was interviewed on ]BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...
's ''Desert Island Discs
''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942.
Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight audio recordin ...
'' programme.
Publications
*''Riverford Farm Cook Book: Tales from the Fields, Recipes from the Kitchen'' (2008) Singh-Watson, G. and Baxter, J.
References
External links
Triodos Bank: interview with Guy Watson October 2011
About Guy Singh-Watson - Riverford Organic Farmers
Guy Singh-Watson
interview on BBC Radio 4 ''Desert Island Discs
''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942.
Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight audio recordin ...
'', 1 July 2018
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh-Watson, Guy
1960 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of Oxford
21st-century British farmers
People from Buckfastleigh
People from Totnes