by Becky Hawes | Apr 29, 2024 | News
Our founder, Kate Hofman, recently joined the Institute of Imagination for an inspiring workshop where she introduced young minds to vertical farming and how GrowUp is using this innovative technique to reshape agriculture. Kate shared her passion for sustainable farming and explained how vertical farming is helping GrowUp address the challenges of food security, environmental sustainability, and climate change. Her lively discussion sparked curiosity and excitement among the attendees, encouraging them to think about how this method can impact the future of food production.
How Vertical Farming Is Revolutionizing Agriculture
During the session, Kate discussed how GrowUp uses vertical farming to grow fresh produce in controlled indoor environments using stacked layers. This method saves space, reduces the need for large amounts of water, and minimizes the environmental footprint of traditional farming. GrowUp’s approach to farming provides a sustainable alternative to conventional agriculture, making it a powerful tool in addressing global food production challenges and the need for environmentally friendly practices.
Inspiring Young Minds to Explore Careers in Sustainability
Kate also took the opportunity to inspire the next generation of innovators by discussing the exciting career opportunities within GrowUp and the broader sustainability sector. She highlighted the growing demand for professionals in vertical farming and other green industries, encouraging young people to explore careers that can make a real impact on the planet. Through this innovative approach, young minds can help shape a sustainable future and contribute to solving major environmental issues.
The Future of Sustainable Agriculture with GrowUp
The workshop also showcased how GrowUp is leading the way in sustainable farming and how vertical farming is integral to a more sustainable food system. Kate emphasized how innovative farming methods, such as those used by GrowUp, are helping to reduce the carbon footprint of food production while increasing local food security. The students left the session inspired by the potential of vertical farming and eager to be part of the solution to the world’s biggest challenges.
by Becky Hawes | Apr 25, 2024 | News
Kate Hofman, founder of GrowUp Farms, has been recognised in The Grocer’s prestigious list of top 10 women shaping the future of grocery technology. This honour acknowledges her pioneering work in sustainable farming and technology, with GrowUp using cutting-edge methods like vertical farming to address food security and climate change.
Reflecting on her place in this top 10 list, Kate said: “I’m both honoured and excited to be included – and also a good shake-up of my imposter syndrome because I don’t think of myself as a woman in tech!”
Kate went on to discuss her evolving role as a business leader and the responsibility she feels to inspire others, especially young women. “I am really starting to take my position as a role-model in business seriously – again, not easy with that imposter syndrome whispering in my ear. There is always more we can do to improve representation so that any young person with brilliant potential can look at people in positions of authority and power and think ‘that could be me one day!’”
According to Kantar research commissioned by HelloFresh that The Grocer’s featured in their focus on this top 10, 49% of young women in the HelloFresh survey said that seeing more women in leadership roles would encourage them to enter the sector, and they are inspiring others to join them. This is an encouraging trend for women aspiring to leadership roles in technology and innovation across various industries.
Kate Hofman is now rubbing shoulders with some of the most influential women in the grocery tech industry, including: Hannah Gibson, CEO of Ocado Retail; Rachel Higham, chief digital and technology officer at M&S; Suzy McClintock, grocery and retail VP at Deliveroo; Claire Pointon, MD of Just Eat UK; Clodagh Moriarty, chief retail and technology officer at Sainsbury’s; and many other incredible tech leaders.
by Becky Hawes | Apr 25, 2024 | News
https://unbeleafable.co.uk
by Becky Hawes | Mar 28, 2024 | News
Pioneering vertical farm GrowUp Farms has added another award to its trophy cabinet after scooping the Best SME of the Year accolade at the edie Awards last week.
Now in its 17th year, the edie Awards are the UK’s largest sustainable business awards scheme and they celebrate companies that are making outstanding progress on sustainability initiatives. They are organised by business media brand edie, which delivers news and events to sustainability, energy and environmental professionals.
The edie award is the sixth award for GrowUp Farms in just over six months and follows hot on the heels of its success for its ready-to-eat, bagged salad brands, Unbeleafable and Fresh Leaf Co. which won The Grocer New Product and Packaging (Champion) 2023 and The Grocer New Product and Packaging (Silver) 2023 respectively. Unbeleafable also won Silver the Salad category in the All-Year Round categories in the Quality Food Awards.
GrowUp Farms won the Sustainability Excellence Champion (Climate) 2023 in the FPC Fresh Awards and GrowUp Farms founder Kate Hofman was named Southeast Sustainability Entrepreneur of the Year 2023 in the Great British Entrepreneur Awards.
GrowUp Farms became the first vertical farm in the UK to launch a branded, ready-to-eat bagged salad into a major supermarket group with the launch of Fresh Leaf Co. into Iceland stores in February 2023. Fresh Leaf Co. is also now stocked in SPAR stores too.
Last summer, GrowUp Farms also launched Unbeleafable, a range of ready-to-eat bagged salad grown at its farm in Kent. The salad collection is available to buy at Tesco stores across the UK.
The salad leaves that are grown at the farm are longer lasting than other salad brand on the market because they are grown in a controlled environment without pesticides or being chlorine washed – all processes that degrade the leaves.
Reflecting on the awards success, GrowUp Farms founder Kate Hofman said: “It’s a real honour to win SME of the Year award. While our journey as an SME began 10 years ago in a small shipping container on a roof in east London, the last year has really seen us reap the rewards of all of the hard work that we have put into getting to this point. Being able to say that we are the first vertical farm to launch a branded ready-to-eat salad into a supermarket group with leaves that last longer than other bagged salad is a huge achievement, and something we are proud of.
“We are grateful to the edie judges for recognising all of the work that we have undertaken to create a vertical farm that truly lessens the impact of its activity on the environment. We are ambitious, optimistic and passionate about growing salad leaves in the most sustainable way possible so that we can feed the nation with home-grown leaves all year round.”
growupfarms.co.uk/
freshleafco.co.uk/
unbeleafable.co.uk/
by Becky Hawes | Mar 22, 2024 | News
Pioneering vertical farm GrowUp Farms has appointed Will Howard as its new UK MD and CCO.
Howard, former MD at baby-food brand Ella’s Kitchen, who joined GrowUp Farms in February, was brought in to help GrowUp unlock their purpose of providing “Better Food For All” and support the team building the business to grow and sell more than one million bags of salad per week.
GrowUp Farms CEO Marcus Whately said: “We are thrilled to have Will on board. He has nearly 20 years’ experience with major food and drink brands – and two of them with B Corps – so he absolutely shares our passion for marrying sustainability in food production with creating compelling brands. He is committed to business as a force for good and will be a great addition to our team.
“We have always been a pioneering organisation, but we can’t rest on our laurels and Will gives us the injection of experience and energy which will ensure we continue to grow great tasting products that will help us grow the category.”
A certified B Corp, GrowUp Farms is the first vertical farm to supply major UK supermarkets with bagged salad brands with the launch of Fresh Leaf Co. into Iceland and SPAR and the Unbeleafable range into Tesco – both already award-winning brands.
Talking about his appointment to the newly created role of UK MD and CCO, Howard said: “I am extremely excited to be joining the team at GrowUp Farms, a vertical farm which is doing things differently, even compared to other vertical farms, and leading the way in how companies provide the best, most sustainable food for all, without compromising on taste. With a clear purpose to grow “better food for all”, a brilliant team and values to help guide how we get there, it won’t be long before we are growing nearly 1.4 million bags of salad per week.
“My two daughters, aged nine and 12, are thrilled about my new role at GrowUp Farms. They love snacking on the salad leaves straight from the bag and are probably on their way to becoming our top consumers!”
Prior to his roles at Ella’s Kitchen, Howard worked at Innocent Drinks, Red Bull and PepsiCo.
