Growing Operative

🌱 Growing Operative 

📍Location: Runcton, near Chichester
🕒Hours:typically 7am – 3pm, 5 days over 7 including weekends
💷Salary: £12.90 per hour, paid to you monthly
📋Job Type: Full-Time, Permanent

At Vitacress, we're passionate about producing the freshest, highest-quality herbs for customers across the UK. We're looking for a Growing Operative to join our friendly team in Runcton and help us nurture our crops from seed to harvest.

Whether you're looking to start a career in horticulture or already have some growing experience, this is a fantastic opportunity to develop new skills, work as part of a supportive team, and play a vital role in producing the herbs found in kitchens across the country.

No horticultural experience? No problem. If you're enthusiastic, reliable, and eager to learn, we'll provide all the training you need to succeed.

What You'll Be Doing

No two days are quite the same, but you'll spend your time:

✅ Sowing seeds and helping young crops thrive
✅ Potting, plugging, spacing, and caring for plants
✅ Monitoring crops and identifying any pest, disease, or quality issues
✅ Maintaining growing areas to the highest standards
✅ Operating equipment and machinery safely
✅ Moving benches and supporting crop production activities
✅ Recording information accurately using company systems
✅ Supporting continuous improvement and reducing waste
✅ Maintaining excellent hygiene, quality, and food safety standards
✅ Working safely and following Health & Safety procedures at all times

What We're Looking For

You'll be a great fit if you are:

✔ Positive, reliable, and hardworking
✔ Comfortable working in a practical, hands-on role
✔ A team player who enjoys supporting colleagues
✔ Keen to learn new skills and take on new challenges
✔ Detail-focused and proud of producing quality work
✔ Able to work independently when needed

Experience That's Helpful (But Not Essential)

🌿 Horticulture or crop-growing experience
🌿 Pest and disease awareness
🌿 Food Safety knowledge
🌿 Health & Safety awareness
🌿 Manual handling experience

If you don't have these yet, don't worry. We're more interested in your attitude and willingness to learn.

What to Expect

This role involves:

🌱 Working closely with plants and crops every day
🚶 Being active, with plenty of walking and standing
🌡 Working in varying temperatures and conditions
🦺 Wearing PPE where required
🤝 Being part of a supportive and hardworking team

Why Join Vitacress?

✅ Full training provided
✅ Permanent, full-time employment
✅ Opportunities to learn and develop new skills
✅ Friendly and supportive working environment
✅ Career progression opportunities across the business
✅ Work for one of the UK's leading fresh produce growers

Many of our colleagues have started in operational roles and progressed into specialist and leadership positions across the business.

Ready to Grow Your Career?

If you enjoy practical work, want to learn new skills, and would like to be part of a team producing high-quality fresh herbs, we'd love to hear from you.

Apply today and become part of the Vitacress team in Runcton! 🌱