GrowUp, the UK’s best-selling vertical farm, announced a substantial £38 million investment from Generate Capital, a prominent sustainable infrastructure investment and operating company
This investment aims to meet the growing demand for GrowUp’s ready-to-eat salads, renowned for being locally grown and pesticide-free.
Generate Capital’s investment will primarily support the expansion of GrowUp’s Kent vertical farm, enhance the company’s leadership in the UK salad category, support the Unbeleafable and Fresh Leaf Co. brands, drive research and development at GrowUp’s Leaf Lab in Cambridge, and bolster GrowUp’s status as a certified B Corporation.
This funding extends Generate Capital’s existing partnership with GrowUp, following an initial financing round in 2021. The previous investment allowed GrowUp to validate its energy-efficient growing system and begin transforming a five-acre brownfield site into the equivalent of 1,000 acres of grade 1 farmland in Kent. GrowUp has since become the first vertical farm to supply branded, bagged salads to the UK’s largest supermarket chain, Tesco, as well as to Iceland, SPAR, and other major food service customers.
Marcus Whately, CEO of GrowUp, commented: “This investment is a fantastic boost to GrowUp and recognises the team’s passion and talent. We partnered with Generate Capital because, as a $10 billion sustainable infrastructure investor with a mission to ‘rebuild the world together,’ Generate Capital aligns with our ethos. With Generate Capital’s support, we have proven that vertically farmed salads are sustainable, cost-competitive, and commercially viable, as well as tasty, healthy, and long-lasting. Together we can unlock a new salad category and meet growing consumer demand.”
Whately added: “Consumers want UK-grown, sustainable, longer-lasting leaves – grown without pesticides. With this further investment, we can expand production to meet demand and continue to transform UK food production. We’ve been growing for over 11 years now. We’ve come a long way with Generate Capital’s support, since Kate Hofman and Tom Webster set up their first vertical farm in 2013, supplying salad leaves to London markets and restaurants.”
Scott Jacobs, CEO and co-founder of Generate Capital, stated: “GrowUp is one of the UK’s most exciting and innovative vertical farming operations, experiencing nearly 800% sales increase year over year. Their ability to quickly earn the trust of the UK’s largest retailers shows the appeal of their product lines, the strength of their team, and their ability to meet rising consumer demand for healthy, locally grown food. We look forward to working with them to keep accelerating the decarbonisation of the food system by providing nutritious, affordable, and sustainable greens to UK consumers and food manufacturers.”
Eduardo Clemente, Managing Director at Generate Capital, added: “Since our first investment in 2021, GrowUp’s unique approach has demonstrated that producing superior, sustainable leafy greens at scale and at competitive pricing is possible, unlocking the potential to capture significant market share in the UK salad market. In less than a year from starting operations at industrial scale, GrowUp’s success in securing significant interest and volumes from some of the UK’s largest retailers is a testament to their value proposition.”
