Jepco launches own fresh produce label Living Lettuce

Fresh produce grower and supplier Jepco has announced the launch its hydroponically produced own label Living Lettuce.

Packaged in sustainable and 100% recyclable and compostable paper bags, the company said the whole head lettuce, which comes with a root system intact, is a great alternative to fresh bagged salad leaves.

“We have the only deep-water system in the UK currently and we see this as the future of fresh produce buying for British consumers because of all the added benefits including quality, shelf-life and flavour,” Simon Creasey, Jepco general manager, said.

“If the root system is kept in water, shoppers can enjoy fresh salad leaves for distinguishably longer than traditional bagged salads, and we are confident that once you have tasted one of these whole head lettuces, you won’t go back to traditional bagged salad leaves.”

The leafy salads are produced and packed at Jepco’s dedicated site in Essex, 52 weeks of the year, and have a shelf life of at least seven days, once purchased. Creasey added that Living Lettuce will be the first of many hydroponically grown, fresh, rooted salad produce from the company.

The product is available into Co-op stores nationwide from May, and the company hopes to launch in Nisa soon.

Co-op buyer Isobel Anstey said the product is proving very popular with customers.

“The quality, flavour and long life of these lettuces, as well as its innovative Kraft paper bag, which has a sustainable and 100% compostable natural coating, means we are offering something on shelf which is hugely exciting to me as a fresh produce buyer,” Anstey said.