NORTH Yorkshire's best known tea and coffee supplier has been honoured with a Queen’s award for enterprise for sustainable development.

Bettys & Taylors of Harrogate received the accolade in recognition of its work to support sustainability, collaboration and resilience through its tea and coffee supply chain.

Best known for Yorkshire Tea and Taylors Coffee, as well as its Bettys Café Tea Rooms, Bettys & Taylors has a global tea and coffee supply chain which works with more than one million farmers and workers in 22 countries.

The award recognises the progress made over the last five years to further strengthen Bettys' sourcing approach, while working alongside suppliers, partners and the wider industry to address social and environmental challenges by investing in sustainability projects.

Since 2017, the family business has supported 168 projects in 15 countries.

Initiatives include working with suppliers on estates in India, Nicaragua and Malawi to install sanitation and clean water systems and improve working and living conditions, and education projects for women and children.

One project which provides bursaries and meals to help children thrive at school has reached 11,000 children.

In coffee communities in Uganda, 5,790 women have received training in business management, entrepreneurial, literacy and financial skills.

The business has also continued to support tree planting partnerships, working with smallholder farmers in Kenya through The International Small Group and Tree Planting Programme.

To date, the partnership has planted nearly three million trees with more than 8,800 farmers, sequestering carbon and providing secondary incomes, along with shade and food.

The business was previously granted a Queen’s Award in 2001 and 2007, in recognition of its commitment to sustainable stakeholder relationships.

In 2017, Bettys received an award for its Taylors Sourcing Approach, which works to improve standards throughout its supply chain, as well as through community and environmental social impact projects.

Keith Writer, supply director at Taylors, said: “Over the last five years we’ve relentlessly focused on securing quality tea and coffee working in partnership with our suppliers on the social and environmental issues they face alongside addressing the systemic challenges across the tea and coffee supply chain through industry initiatives.

"The strength of these relationships proved especially valuable in helping us to provide stability, constancy, and support to our suppliers during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We acknowledge there is always more to do, however we are honoured to be recognised for our ongoing efforts.

"This award in the year of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee inspires us to drive for greater impact to ensure a thriving, sustainable future for all our tea and coffee-growing communities around the world.”

Now in their 56th year, the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are presented in four categories – international trade, innovation, sustainable development and promoting opportunity through social mobility.

The winners are selected under strict judging criteria, against significant competition.