Lettuce and herbs are grown right among the customers
At Ica Maxi Ängelholm, the concept of locally grown has been taken one step further. Now, lettuce and herbs are thriving in a facility from Swegreen—right inside the store.
Thw two brothers Sebastian and Andreas Damréus run the store together, and since Christmas week 2024, they have been selling their own locally grown lettuce and herbs. Watch the video below to hear Sebastian talk about the facility.
Farming with the Environment in Mind
The brothers had been considering growing produce in the store for several years, but the pandemic put their plans on hold. In late summer 2024, they began renovations, and by Christmas week, the store was able to start selling its first homegrown vegetables.
“The foundation of everything is an environmental mindset, which is very important to the younger generation, and we need to think about future generations,” says Sebastian. “Even though the climate here in the south is favorable, we are still completely dependent on imported crops.”
“That dependence will now decrease drastically as we start growing our own leafy greens and herbs. It feels important to contribute to maximum sustainability, from reducing carbon emissions to growing in a fully circular system with minimal environmental impact.”
“It’s also about taste and quality. Personally, I think what we grow here tastes so much better, and many customers have told us the same. It’s incredibly fresh, and that makes a difference,” Sebastian adds.
The facility primarily produces lettuce and herbs. Once the staff harvests and packs them into bags, they are immediately transported to the vegetable section for customers to purchase. Through the glass walls of the growing area—located right in the middle of the store—curious shoppers can get a glimpse of the greens as they grow.
“Our delicatessen and catering departments will also start using more of our homegrown produce. Every salad we make will feature our own lettuce, and we can start making pesto from our basil, among many other things,” says Sebastian.
“There has been great interest from both other stores and our customers. I believe more retailers will invest in this kind of solution. In the future, I also think we’ll expand to grow other things, like microgreens, sprouts, or even flowers.”
The Freja Growing Solution
Freja is Swegreen’s largest growing system and is available in multiple sizes. At ICA Maxi Ängelholm, it occupies 60 square meters of floor space, with a total growing area of 160 square meters spread across multiple levels. The facility can produce an average of 450 plants per day, year-round.
“We were surprised at how much we could grow with Swegreen’s solution using just 60 square meters. The fact that it produces leafy greens that taste better and are healthier than traditionally grown ones is, of course, a huge plus. Add to that the sustainability aspect, and we knew this was something we had to explore further,” says Sebastian.
Freja offers great flexibility in the variety of crops it can grow. It is placed in a closed environment, making it extremely circular and climate-smart. Its resource efficiency is exceptional, with outstanding recycling of energy, water, and more. Even the carbon dioxide used in the growing process comes from the store’s own air.