Supermarket salad bags may not match the diversity of farm-grown leaves, but a recent taste test found some brands are introducing more exotic varieties. The review evaluated 10 products on leaf diversity, flavour, freshness, and value for money, revealing significant differences in quality and transparency.
Top Performers: G's Organic and Aldi Lead the Way
G's organic mixed leaves, priced at £2.90 for 200g (£1.45/100g) at Ocado, earned a four-star rating for its variety of at least three unwashed leaves, including sweet baby spinach and red and green batavia. The packet notes seasonal variation, which the reviewer appreciated for its rarity in supermarket produce. Grown in the UK and EU, it is the only Soil Association-certified organic salad mix in the test.
Aldi's Nature's Pick rocket & baby leaf salad, at 89p for 90g (99p/100g), also received four stars. It contains four leaves—mizuna, baby spinach, lollo rosso, and rocket—with a sweet, flavourful profile and a peppery, citrus, and mustard twang. The reviewer called it "really good value."
Premium Options: Morrisons and M&S Impress
Morrisons the Best butterhead, pea shoots, chard & sorrel (£1.60 for 80g, £2/100g) earned four stars for its attractive, aromatic combination of curly pea shoots, crisp red butterhead, zesty red sorrel, and chard, with origin listed as Yorkshire.
M&S Collection citrus sorrel baby leaves (£2.30 for 80g, £2.88/100g) also scored four stars. The reviewer noted its distinctive sour green sorrel and bitter red-veined sorrel, combined with frilly and round-headed leaves, vertically farmed in Italy. "I ate the whole bag like a packet of crisps," they said, calling it the best splurge.
Mid-Range and Budget Choices
Waitrose Essential mixed salad (£1.15 for 100g, £1.15/100g) earned three stars for its entry-level two-leaf mix of classic frilly green and red leaves with a classic bitter edge.
Fresh & Naked baby leaves (£1.20 for 90g at Tesco, £1.33/100g) scored three stars for its unwashed four-leaf mix including mustardy wild rocket, creamy baby spinach, citrussy baby red chard, and red oak-leaf lettuce. However, the reviewer warned of mixed online reviews, advising to check freshness before buying.
Sainsbury's Italian-style salad (£1.35 for 100g, £1.35/100g) also received three stars for its diverse four-leaf mix of sweet red cos, bitter green chicory-like leaf, peppery rocket, and succulent spinach, described as "so nourishing I couldn't stop eating it."
Vertically Farmed and Standard Options
Unbeleafable mixed baby leaves (£1.50 for 80g at Tesco and Ocado, £1.88/100g) earned three stars for its faintly bitter and sweet mix of crunchy-stemmed leaves including frisée and oak-leaf-style lettuce, though some oxidisation and damage were noted. It is vertically farmed in Kent without pesticides by GrowUp Farms, a B Corp-certified company.
Tesco mixed leaf salad (£1.20 for 120g, £1/100g) scored two stars for its sweet, well-textured two-leaf mix of red and green frilly lettuce with a mildly bitter, savoury edge.
Lowest Rated: Asda's Beetroot Mix
Asda beetroot, baby spinach & baby kale salad (£1.08 for 120g, 90p/100g) received only one star. The two-leaf mix with beetroot matchsticks had sweet beetroot, mild bitter kale, and luscious spinach, but a slight mustiness likely due to the cut beetroot. The reviewer advised checking for a long use-by date before purchasing.
Overall, the test highlighted that while many supermarket bags lack provenance information—most listing only country of origin or vague ingredients like "red and green lettuce"—some brands are improving leaf diversity and flavour. The reviewer emphasised that freshness and flavour vary dramatically between packets, even for the same leaf type.
