OUR STORY / SINCE 1968
Three generations. One family business.
Since 1968, LR Smith & Sons has grown from a family farming business into the potato-growing and supply business we run today.
Based at Ringlemere Farm in Woodnesborough, near Sandwich, we have adapted with the changing agricultural landscape while keeping the same family-run approach at the heart of the business.
1968 — Where it began
LR Smith & Sons was founded in 1968 by Lionel Smith and his sons, Robert and Andrew.
Lionel was the youngest of six brothers and had previously been involved with E. Smith & Sons farming. The new business began with farming at both Black Pond Farm and Ringlemere Farm, with livestock and arable farming forming an important part of the early business.
Following Lionel’s death in 1972, Bob and Andrew were given notice to leave Black Pond Farm. The business continued at Ringlemere Farm, where the brothers gradually improved the buildings and increased the acreage they farmed.
Bob concentrated largely on the farming side of the business, while Andrew was responsible for the wholesale round. During this period, the farm produced a wide range of vegetables which were sold to local greengrocers, particularly in Whitstable, Herne Bay and Folkestone.
The next generation
As the business developed, the next generation of the family became involved. Bob’s sons Tim, Jeremy and Chris, and Andrew’s son Stuart became partners in the business.
Tim later left to follow his own path, while Jeremy, Chris and Stuart continued with LRS. Cedric Marsh joined in the 1970s and remains involved with the business today.
By the 1990s, the agricultural landscape was changing. The increasing dominance of supermarkets made the traditional wholesale vegetable business more difficult, prompting LRS to change direction.
Having always grown potatoes, the business increasingly focused on supplying potatoes to the local fish & chip trade.
Today — Still growing. Still delivering.
The move towards the fish & chip trade became the foundation of the business we operate today. Rather than simply growing potatoes as a general agricultural crop, we began concentrating on varieties and crops suited to the needs of our customers.
We continued began delivering the potatoes ourselves, building the long-standing relationships with local fish & chip shops that remain central to the business today.
Today, LR Smith & Sons remains a third-generation family business, based at Ringlemere Farm in Woodnesborough. We continue to grow the majority of the potatoes we supply ourselves, while also working with trusted local growers and sourcing further afield when necessary to maintain supply.
Our customers are still predominantly fish & chip shops and businesses serving the fish & chip trade, and we continue to deliver directly to them throughout East Kent. More than 50 years after the business began, the fundamentals remain much the same.
Family owned and run, we know our spuds because we grow our spuds.
From livestock and arable farming, to vegetables and wholesale, and ultimately to the potato trade, LR Smith & Sons has changed considerably since 1968. What has remained is the family, the farm and the importance of long-standing relationships with the people we supply.