Vertical Farm operator GrowUp Farms has expanded its burgeoning supermarket offering with the launch of new bagged salad brand Unbeleafable.
Three lines of ready-to-eat salads under the new brand will be available in Tesco from 26 July. The range (rsp: £1.50/90g) consists of Crisp Green Leaves, Mixed Baby Leaves and Rocket & Baby Leaves lines.
The launch of the brand marks the first time vertically-farmed salads will be available in a big four UK supermarket, GrowUp said. It launched a bagged salad under the Fresh Leaf Co brand into Iceland in February.
Unbeleafable is grown at GrowUp’s vertical farm in Kent, which creates the “perfect growing conditions” for leaves without the use of pesticides or washing in chlorine, it added. The business also claimed its products remained fresher for longer than other ready-to-eat bagged salads sold in the mults, due to these conditions.
“This in turn means they taste crisper, stay fresh and wilt-free for longer than other bagged salads,” a spokeswoman said.
“When people taste our salad, they tell us they didn’t know lettuce could taste this good or last all week,” added Kate Hofman, founder of GrowUp Farms.
“That’s not a surprise when our research shows 98% of shoppers said they throw away bagged salad. We’re incredibly proud that Unbeleafable can help consumers reduce food waste,” she added, pointing to how the product’s extended shelf life reduced waste.
The farm uses 100% renewable energy from the bioenergy plant next door and once expansion work is complete, will use 94% less water than ready-to-eat salads grown in a field or greenhouse.
“Unbeleafable and its longer-lasting leaves are here to shake up the bagged salad category,” added Hofman. “We’re thrilled to be working with Tesco to get salads from our vertical farm onto the plates of more British consumers.”
Category buying manager for horticulture and prepared produce at Tesco, Alex Edwards, said: “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.”
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