GrowUp Farms has launched Unbeleafable, the first range of ready-to-eat salads grown in a vertical farm to be sold in a major UK supermarket. Three products from the range will be available in selected Tesco stores from today.
The Unbeleafable range of salads is grown at GrowUp Farms’ vertical farm, Pepperness, in Kent. The salads are grown without pesticides and, unlike conventionally produced salads, don’t need to be washed in chlorine to make them ready to eat. Unbeleafable leaves are claimed to stay fresher for longer than other ready-to-eat bagged salads sold in UK supermarkets.
Unbeleafable is a step towards increasing the resilience of the country’s food system. The UK imports 67% of salads eaten each year and over 90% in the winter. The vertical farm method means Unbeleafable salads can be grown all year round.
Kate Hofman, founder of GrowUp Farms, said: “At GrowUp Farms, we’ve been growing unbelievably good leaves for over a decade. At Pepperness, our latest farm, we’re producing ready-to-eat salads for major UK supermarkets, demonstrating the commercial viability of vertical farming and its role in sustainable UK food production.
“When people taste our salad, they tell us they didn’t know lettuce could taste this good or last all week! That’s not a surprise when our research shows that 98% of shoppers said they throw away bagged salad. What a waste! We’re incredibly proud that Unbeleafable can help consumers reduce food waste.”
She added: “Unbeleafable and its longer-lasting leaves are here to shake up the bagged salad category. We’re thrilled to be working with Tesco to get salads from our vertical farm onto the plates of more British consumers. It is great that Tesco is backing our sustainable approach to farming to make the UK more self-sufficient and to build a more resilient food and farming system.”
Alex Edwards, category buying manager for horticulture and prepared produce for Tesco, commented: “We know that bagged salads are incredibly popular, not only in the summer months but all year round. So we are very excited to be offering Tesco shoppers Unbeleafable, an innovative new range of branded bagged salads that stays fresh for longer and is grown sustainably, which is something we know our customers are increasingly passionate about.”
The Unbeleafable range consists of Crisp Green Leaves, Mixed Baby Leaves and Rocket & Baby Leaves lines (RRP: £1.50/90g).
NAM Implications:
- Vertical farm produce ticks some interesting boxes.
- Rivals, please note…
