Vertical farming: Coop and Swegreen Announce Partnership

Stockholm / SE. (swe) Coop butiker + Stormarknader AB, indirect member of Coop Sweden, has joined forces with Swegreen AB, a pioneer in the field of vertical farming, to embark a collaboration based on a disruptive innovation with aim to revolutionize the way fresh produce is grown and supplied. This strategic partnership will see the introduction of in-store vertical farming units at three Coop locations, marking a significant step towards ensuring the availability of high-quality and locally grown greens.

As consumers become increasingly conscious about the origin and sustainability of their food, Coop has consistently sought innovative solutions to meet these evolving demands. By teaming up with Swegreen, a globally renowned actor in the field of vertical farming, Coop is taking another leap towards achieving its sustainability goals while providing its customers with a unique and engaging shopping experience.

The in-store vertical farming units, integrated seamlessly into the Coop store layouts, will utilize advanced technology and state-of-the-art agricultural practices to grow a variety of fresh produce. These units will harness the power of vertical farming, where crops are grown in vertically stacked layers, using precisely controlled light, temperature, and nutrient levels. This groundbreaking approach enables year-round cultivation, eliminates the need for soil, pesticides, significantly reduces water usage by 99%, and minimizes transportation emissions associated with traditional agriculture to zero.

Commenting on this partnership, Meta Persdotter, CEO of Coop Butiker + Stormarknader expressed her enthusiasm by stating, «We are thrilled to join forces with Swegreen and establish these in-store vertical farming units, as it aligns with our commitment to sustainability. In-Store Farming on site combines impact and shopping experience, provides high-quality greens and empowers our customers to make more conscious and responsible choices.»

Swegreen, known for its technology and expertise in vertical farming, is equally excited about the collaboration. CEO Pierre Mohlin: «Partnering with Coop is an exciting opportunity for us and our shared vision of driving positive change and promoting sustainable innovation in the food retail sector. This has been an important milestone for us as well, as one of the main goals of our 2023 to 2025 growth vision is built on corporate partnership for sizable businesses and Coop with their core values are a great partner for us for rolling out of our growing platforms.»

The first three Coop locations to feature in-store vertical farming units are announced to be in the Stockholm region. Stora Coop Port73 in Haninge, Stora Coop Bromma and Stora Coop Stuvsta in specific and with a launch date under June 2023 for all three. Coop Sweden and Swegreen AB are already working closely on this groundbreaking initiative and the installations are in process.

About Coop Butiker + Stormarknader

Coop Butiker + Stormarknader AB operates approximately 200 grocery stores in the counties of Stockholm, Uppsala, Södermanland, and Östergötland. The company has around 5,300 employees and generates an annual revenue of approximately 13 billion Swedish kronor (over 1 billion Euros). It is a part of consumer cooperative of Stockholm, which is Sweden’s largest consumer cooperative with approximately 1.2 million members. Sweden’s 28 consumer cooperatives own Coop in Sweden, which is one of the country’s largest grocery store chains with over 800 stores. Coop Sweden has 3.7 million members, over 22,000 employees, and generates an annual revenue of approximately 43 billion SEK (over 4 billion Euros).

About Swegreen

Swegreen AB is a pioneering company dedicated to revolutionizing the future of food production through sustainable vertical farming solutions. Their cutting-edge technology and expertise enable the cultivation of fresh, nutritious produce with minimal environmental impact. Swegreen offers these systems in a subscription model to retailers, supermarkets, restaurants and hotels, known as Farming as a Service (Photo: Swegreen).