Frequently Asked Questions about Saveggy®

The Saveggy plant-based protection is is a thin layer of rapeseed and oats. It helps retain the natural freshness of the vegetable, ensuring a longer shelf life. It works just as well as plastic film.

The rapeseed and oats we currently use are grown in Sweden.

It is produced in Sweden.

Saveggy plant-based protection is extremely thin and designed to stay on the cucumber and be eaten. The protection continues to keep the cucumber fresh in your fridge, even after you have rinsed off your cucumber. If you still want to remove it, you can use lukewarm water and a brush.

Saveggy plant-based protection contains no gluten, since we only use the oil from rapeseed and oats.

Yes, the protection is 100% plant-based since it consists of vegetable oils from rapeseed and oats.

No, it is free from additives. The protection consists of nothing but rapeseed and oats.

Absolutely! The Saveggy protection preserves the cucumber's crispiness just as well as plastic film does.

The cucumbers are harvested, washed and dried before being gently protected with a thin, invisible spray made from rapeseed and oats. After drying the plant-based protection is in place.

A Saveggy protected cucumber will stay fresh for at least as long as a cucumber wrapped in plastic film, and in both cases, they will last significantly longer than an unprotected cucumber.

A cucumber should be stored in a dark and cool place (10-14°C).

Unprotected cucumbers have a shelf life of 3-4 days, while cucumbers with plastic wrap or with Saveggy plant-based protection have a shelf life of 12-14 days. This is under the right storage conditions, i.e. dark and cool.

Today, we can grow high-quality Swedish cucumbers in greenhouses throughout the year.

The amount of plastic used today creates major problems. Our goal is to reduce plastic usage without negatively impacting the quality or shelf life of cucumbers. We have developed a sustainable alternative that is equally effective, replacing plastic wrap with a plant-based protection made from rapeseed and oats.

Approximately 90% of cucumbers sold in Sweden are wrapped in plastic. Only a small number of unprotected cucumbers are sold to food service and restaurants.

Without any kind of protection, cucumbers would stay fresh for only 3-4 days. Since cucumbers are composed of 95% water, moisture retention is crucial for maintaining their freshness and crispiness. A cucumber with plastic wrap or Saveggy protection will stay fresh and crispy for 12-14 days.

If all consumers in Sweden would choose cucumbers with the Saveggy protection we would save around 130 tons of plastic per year*. We continue to reduce food waste because the shelf life is at least as good as with plastic film. *)According to a calculation based on 27,000 tonnes of plastic- wrapped cucumber/year with 4.8 g plastic/kg cucumber. Source: Report by Eurostat (https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat)

We started to develop a protection for cucumbers since they are sold in big volumes in Sweden. 70-90 million plastic-wrapped cucumbers per year are sold in Sweden. of which around 90% are plastic-wrapped today. We have already started to develop plant-based protection for other fruits and vegetables.

Yes, Saveggy is an innovation company from Lund. based in southern Sweden.

Saveggy plant-based protection is a new innovation to the world, and a brand new product launch. If you eat a Saveggy protected cucumber, you are one of the very first to try it out. During the spring 2024, we will launch the product on the Swedish market in selected test stores. In late autumn 2024, a larger launch will take place, also in Swedish stores.

We, the founders of Saveggy, have a background in the packaging industry, including experience with Tetra Pak. We decided to start up a Swedish innovation company to promote a more sustainable food system, reduce food waste and plastic usage. We have developed a plant-based protection aimed at helping the world waste less, and cucumbers are just the beginning!