Ica Maxi Stenhagen has established a collaboration with Swegreen and has launched Uppsala’s first vertical farm in stores. Their customers can buy locally grown and freshly harvested herbs and leafy greens all year round, regardless of the season.

VerticalFarmDaily spoke with Swegreen’s Chief Innovation Officer Sepehr Mousavi and he mentions that the establishment of this farm is another step for Swegreen. “In this way we can show our proof of concept and the strength to be able to scale up. Now we have four large-scale units in four of Sweden’s most populated regions; Stockholm (Solna), Gothenburg, Linköping and now Uppsala. Our technology and innovation is solid and paves the way for us to take a larger market share in the Nordic region and gives us the opportunity to soon go out on the international playgrounds. ”

By installing Swegreen’s vertical agricultural platform, which is specially developed for supermarkets and stores, Ica Maxi Stenhagen takes another important step forward, enabling its customers to shop more sustainably.

“With our farm in store, a supermarket can harvest up to 450 plants a day. The store will have the opportunity to produce its own daily fresh crops grown in a climate-smart way with unique technology,” says Swegreen’s CEO Pierre Mohlin.

Swegreen’s system is based on hydroponic in a controlled environment, which means that plants grow on rock wool plugs with the roots spread in a nutrient-rich water solution instead of soil. On the farm, each plant gets what it needs to grow perfectly in an optimal condition and climate adapted to their needs.

“Our store platform is actually the world’s most productive among our competitors and is uniquely based on the entire cultivation process that takes place in the store itself. No transport is needed and because the system is fully controlled, no synthetic chemicals need to be sprayed on our plants for protection,” says Pierre Mohlin.

“When I look at the farm here inside our store, it feels like the future is already here! At the same time, it sends a clear message, as we know that locally produced and sustainable fruit and vegetables are extremely important to our customers. With our own farm on place, we fulfilled our customers’ wishes and showed that we are an innovative store that provides a strong customer experience, ”says Ica Maxi Stenhagen’s Deputy CEO, Gabriel Purbe.

– Our expectations are obviously high and I am glad that the farm has already become a topic of conversation and a trendy attraction among our customers and those who live in Uppsala, says Gabriel Purbe.

For more information:
Swegreen
[email protected]
www.swegreen.se