Boosting its offering of vertically farmed produce, The Kroger Co. has unveiled an expanded distribution partnership with indoor farmer Gotham Greens.
Plans call for Kroger to roll out Gotham Greens produce to almost 1,000 stores by the end of this year, up from over 300 stores currently, the Cincinnati-based supermarket giant said yesterday. In addition, an extended distribution of Gotham Greens plant-based dips, cooking sauces and dressings will put the brand in nearly 2,000 Kroger stores nationwide.
Gotham Greens employs hydroponic growing systems in sunlight-powered greenhouses, allowing its farms to use up to 95% less water and 97% less land versus field-grown farming, Kroger noted. These farming practices, in turn, enable the brand to grow, harvest and deliver non-GMO, pesticide-free salad greens and herbs 365 days of the year, resulting in a longer shelf life and supporting Kroger’s ongoing efforts to create a more sustainable food system, the retailer said.
“We’re proud to expand our collaboration with Gotham Greens as we work together to bring fresh, local, high-quality and longer-lasting produce to our customers in an environmentally sustainable way,” Dan De La Rosa, group vice president of fresh merchandising at Kroger, said in a statement. “Gotham Greens’ state-of-the-art, climate-controlled greenhouses reduce the number of days the products spend between harvest and our store shelves, while removing unpredictable weather challenges and improving product quality and shelf life. These factors ultimately reduce food waste, both in stores and in consumers’ homes.”
Gotham Greens has been a Kroger supplier since 2020, when the brand first launched its products in the grocer’s King Soopers division. Plans call for Gotham Greens’ leafy greens and herb line to continue to roll out across King Soopers, Ralphs, Dillons, Frys, QFC, Fred Meyer and selected Kroger banners stores as the grower opens new greenhouses across the country, Kroger reported. The Gotham Greens fresh food portfolio dressings, cooking sauces and plant-based dips that are “packed with plants,” minimally processed and use high-quality ingredients, including sustainably grown herbs, the companies said.
By this summer, Brooklyn, New York-based Gotham Greens will own and operate 13 greenhouses, spanning more than 40 acres, or 1.8 million square feet, across California, Colorado, Illinois, Texas, Georgia, Maryland, Virginia, New York and Rhode Island.
“Kroger and Gotham Greens share a commitment to building a more resilient and equitable food system, putting people and our planet at the forefront of everything we do,” said Viraj Puri, co-founder and CEO of Gotham Greens. “With increasing climate and supply chain-related issues facing our food system, it’s more important than ever to bring innovative farming solutions that grow high-quality produce while using fewer precious natural resources. Gotham Greens is growing fast, and we look forward to bringing our brand to new markets in the coming months.”
Kroger has been active in the vertically farmed produce arena, working with such growers as 80 Acres Farms and Infarm. Announced in late 2019, the partnership with Infarm, a Berlin-based urban farming network, brought modular living produce farms to Kroger’s QFC stores in Washington state. And in 2021, Kroger rolled out vertically farmed greens and vegetables from 80 Acres to hundreds more stores after a 32-store pilot begun in November 2019.
A source: https://www.winsightgrocerybusiness.com
