Stay home, skip the supermarket, and let the fresh produce
come to you.
As the CDC recommends that we opt for grocery home delivery
rather than leaving home to go to the grocery store, it can be difficult to get
fresh groceries in the way we're used to. According to The Wall Street
Journal, a Nielsen survey shows that consumer habits during the pandemic have
shifted toward buying frozen or canned fruits and vegetables over fresh produce
at grocery stores, possibly due to the fact that getting fresh produce requires
more frequent and, during this time, risky trips to the store. Lucky for
consumers who don't want to skimp on their fruits and veggies, there are now
many options for online produce-box deliveries that will satisfy your meal
needs and won't break the budget.
Wildkale
This online farm-to-table
marketplace skips the warehouse and brings produce right from farmers, who
pack and ship your order to your doorstep overnight, for a small fee of $5.99.
Wildkale works with several farms that deliver within 300 miles from their
respective locations in parts of Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey,
Connecticut, and other parts of New England. The company is in the process of
expanding to other areas of the U.S. Just enter your zip code to choose fresh
and 100-percent local produce without the hassle of going to the supermarket.
Misfits Market
This New-Jersey based
delivery service brings sustainability and low prices to online produce-ordering
with its subscription boxes full of rescued food and produce that has been otherwise
kept off supermarket shelves for issues with distribution or not matching an
appealing size or shape. While this food would have otherwise just become
waste, the products that Misfits Market rescues are perfect-quality produce,
although sometimes funny-looking, and very accessible at 40 percent less than
grocery store prices. Just select your box size and desired frequency of
delivery, and the company will ship you a box full of various food items that
depend on what the company acquires that week.
If you're in the mood for some summer citrus, this delivery
service from a 70-acre Ojai, California, citrus farm may have something special
in store for you. Friend's Ranches has been growing all kinds of citrus for 100
years, ranging from navel and Valencia oranges to satsuma mandarins and even
some varieties of avocados. The farm has adjusted to the decrease in its usual
food-service-account business because of the pandemic by increasing online
delivery, which helps support continued operations. The online store changes
depending on each week's harvest, and you can buy mail orders of single
varieties of fruit by the box.
Get the best of Farmer Lee Jones's rarified produce, grown
on his family's 350-acre Ohio farm. This produce is normally catered to
Michelin-starred kitchens and chefs such as Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud,
but now you can get it directly to cook in your own home. The $59 Introduction
Box includes farm-fresh vegetables and herbs that vary based on the season and
the best harvest that day. The $89 Best of the Season Box brings you
chef-quality ingredients like mixed greens, summer squash, asparagus, beets,
and more, along with some microgreens. The boxes are higher-priced than some
other options, but it's worth it for those fresh top-produce ingredients.
For those in New Orleans looking for some fresh produce and wanting
to support local businesses, the city's largest wholesale produce supplier is
now selling directly to the public. The company is offering curbside pickup at
its warehouse on S. Dupre Street and some local deliveries, if they meet a
minimum spending amount. You can order fruit, vegetable, and specialty-item
boxes for pick-up the following day.
With high demands due to a surge in online ordering and some
shipping complications, some subscriptions and vendors may have a waiting list
to join or other logistics that require some patience. But in these uncertain
times, the fresh produce you want may be worth the wait. You may also want to
reach out to your local farmer's market to check on produce-delivery services
to support your community small businesses and farmers.
