NEW YORK, NY — Bowery Farming, the largest vertical farming company in the United States, today introduced Baby Rabe, the next release in its ‘Farmer’s Selection’ product category, which first launched in stores January 2021.
Tender, baby greens with the familiar bite of broccoli rabe, balanced with a hint of sweetness, Baby Rabe is now available through the end of December 2021 in Whole Foods Market locations throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, as well as in select local New York City and Mid-Atlantic (MD, PA) independent retailers.
“Bowery’s R&D team works year-round to uncover flavor-packed Protected Produce and bring new and exciting culinary experiences to consumers,” said Katie Seawell, Chief Commercial Officer at Bowery Farming. “The Farmer’s Selection category emerged as a way to let consumers in on our R&D discovery process, bringing the thrill of uncovering a new ingredient at your local farm stand to the grocery store. Earthy and autumnal Baby Rabe quickly became the front-runner for our final release of 2021, adding the perfect depth to soups, slow braises, holiday sides, and more.”
Under the Farmer’s Selection category, Bowery launches a new small-batch, wildly flavorful green every four months. The first next-generation green, Mustard Frills — hearty mustard greens with a tingly start and a fiery, wasabi-style finish — received wide-spread fan-fare throughout its run earlier this year. The second release, Green Sorrel, arrived just in time for the warmer months to lend its bright, citrus notes to foods perfect for outdoor, socially distanced-gatherings: open-faced grilled flatbreads topped with green sorrel salad; green sorrel-laced potato salad; steamed clams in green sorrel sauce; and green sorrel-infused Arnold Palmers. Moving into the fall and winter months, Bowery is proud to release Baby Rabe as its third and final Farmer’s Selection release for the 2021 calendar year. With the familiar bite of broccoli rabe and a hint of sweetness, these baby greens add punch to hearty soups and garlicky braises. Bringing depth to winter salads and stews, Baby Rabe rounds out any autumn or winter menu — think of it as your new favorite fall layer. Grown locally in Bowery’s vertical farms, Baby Rabe is pesticide-free, from non-GMO seeds, and uses a fraction of the water and land as traditional agriculture.
Baby Rabe is the latest commercial introduction of a Bowery R&D product at the retail aisle. On the heels of the company’s latest Series C fundraise, Bowery will continue to focus on innovation at the category level as it remains committed to its quest for the next generation of leafy greens, as well as the development of new fruit and vegetable cultivars designed specifically for use in its indoor, proprietary growing system.
A first for the Farmer’s Selection series, Bowery Baby Rabe will also be highlighted as the featured ingredient in a special @grossypelosi X Ciao, Gloria Piandina sandwich called “The Ciao, Baby,” a sandwich collaboration from Brooklyn all-day-cafe and neighborhood hotspot, Ciao, Gloria, and Brooklyn-based Food & Lifestyle Creator, Dan Pelosi. Bowery Baby Rabe is paired with chicken, gouda, apples, celery root, whole grain mustard and mayo in this special available exclusively throughout the month of October, with $1 per sandwich sold to be donated to SAGE, an organization dedicated to providing advocacy, services, and support to older members of the LGBT community. A Grain Bowl of farro, Bowery Baby Rabe, apples, feta, scallions, walnuts, carrots, squash and a malt vinaigrette, will also be available on the Ciao, Gloria, October menu; both items will launch Saturday, October 2, 2021, during a special brunch event at the restaurant from 11:00AM to 3:00PM ET, featuring a meet-and-greet with @grossypelosi and sampling of Bowery Baby Rabe.
Bowery’s pesticide-free produce is available in over 850 retailers in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions, including Whole Foods Market, Giant Food, Albertsons Companies (Acme and Safeway) and Walmart and via e-commerce platforms like Amazon Fresh. Offering 13 SKUs commercially, Bowery produce ranges from a new-and-improved version of iceberg lettuce called Crispy Leaf, velvety and peppery Arugula with a punch, delicate Baby Kale with a sweet finish, smooth yet crisp Baby Butter Lettuce, tender Baby Romaine, a variety of herbs, and more. Bowery has experienced more than 750% growth in brick-and-mortar sales and more than quadrupled its sales with e-commerce partners, including Amazon, since early 2020. The company’s newest farm in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania will bring local, pesticide-free produce, harvested year-round at peak freshness, to a surrounding population of 50 million people within a 200-mile radius, and will be its largest and most technologically-advanced commercial farm yet, further automating the growing process from seed to store.
# # #
About Bowery Farming
Founded in 2015, Bowery Farming is on a mission to democratize access to high-quality, local, safe and sustainable produce. Bowery builds smart indoor farms near cities, growing fresher, pesticide-free Protected Produce with bold flavor in precisely controlled environments, 365 days a year. At the heart of each farm is the proprietary BoweryOS, which integrates software, hardware, sensors, AI, computer vision systems, machine learning models and robotics to orchestrate and automate the entirety of its operations. As a result, each farm creates far less waste and uses a fraction of the water and land compared to traditional agriculture.
Based in New York City, Bowery is the largest vertical farming company in the United States, serving major e-commerce platforms and more than 850 grocery stores in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, including Albertsons Companies (Safeway and Acme), Amazon Fresh, Giant Food, Walmart, Weis, Whole Foods Market, and specialty grocers, with produce that’s harvested year-round at peak freshness, delivered within days of harvest.
Bowery has raised $472 million from leading investors, including Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC, Temasek, GV (formerly Google Ventures), General Catalyst, GGV Capital, First Round Capital, and individuals including Henry Kravis, Jeff Wilke, as well as some of the foremost thought leaders in food, including Tom Colicchio, José Andrés and David Barber of Blue Hill.
