Discounter Penny Italia has become the first mainstream grocer in Italy to launch a private label range sourced from vertical farming.
The 'pianetiamo' range is produced through the use of aeroponic technology, a form of vertical farming that uses 95% less water, zero pesticides, and with little to no land usage required. The range is also 100% sourced in Italy.
Salad Products
In its launch phase, the new range includes three salad SKUs: a lettuce SKU and two salad mixes, Balsamic and Piccantina. The latter two will be branded under the recently-launched ‘Natura è’ brand, which consists of 100% Italian fruit and vegetables sourced from sustainable production.
Penny Italia claims that, from an organoleptic point of view, the salads are unique in terms of taste, compared to other products in this category.
The new product line has just gone on sale in Penny Italia’s 435 outlets in 18 regions of Italy.
Full-Year Performance
The discounter, which is owned by Germany's REWE Group, closed 2022 with a turnover of almost €1.5 billion (+9.3% year-on-year) and is forecasting further growth of 8.7% in 2023 with plans for 23 new points of sale.
Last year, capex amounted to €75 million, with €150 million earmarked for investments over the next 24 months.
As part of its sustainability initiatives, Penny Italia has so far managed to reduce CO2 emissions per square metre of sales area by 39% and energy consumption per square metre of sales by 13.5%.
Read More: Penny Italia Acquires 16 Stores, Grows Presence In Rome
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Private Label news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
