In a bid to make eating local, seasonal produce as easy as possible, I've decided to try out some of the produce box delivery services available in Auckland. This week's box is from Foodbox.co.nz, an online produce box delivery service set up because its founders were frustrated at how difficult it was to get their "5 plus a day". I find any claim that it's difficult to eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables per day in New Zealand dubious, but I think it's great that people like Foodbox.co.nz are making it easier for us. They source, pack and deliver the produce on the day.
I ordered their Singles Fruit 'n' Veg Box for $32.00, including delivery. I live with my partner, but we still had some fruit and vegetables left from last week's box, and the photo on Foodbox.co.nz suggested the Singles Fruit 'n' Veg Box would be sufficient for us. It sure looks like it will be. The box contained a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, including potatoes, onions and tomatoes, which you have to order separately from some of the other produce box delivery services. The produce came unwrapped, except for the salad leaves and mushrooms. It all looked fresh and in great condition, apart from one of the chillies, which was a bit squashed.
Foodbox.co.nz is more of a slick, professional operation than the other Auckland produce box delivery services I've tried so far. They have their own branded cardboard delivery boxes rather than the reused banana boxes utilised by other companies. When I opened the box I found a little envelope addressed to me, which contained a welcome letter, order form, recipe based on the produce in the box and a flyer identifying the less common contents of the box. I found this really appealing. Recipe suggestions are really helpful to someone like me who's used to cooking with common vegetables, and I liked receiving the information about the contents in the box, rather than having to track it down on the website.
The Foodbox.co.nz website is easy to use. You can check out what will be in the next week's boxes on the preceding weekend. Then when you order, you can specify anything you don't want in your box and they'll substitute it with something else. Unlike some of the other produce box delivery services, there's no provision in the ordering process for customers to give delivery instructions. That meant the delivery guy had to call me when he got to my apartment to find out where to bring my box, which wouldn't have been ideal if I couldn't answer my phone when he called.
The big downside of Foodbox.co.nz is that the produce is not organic. Still, much better than buying your produce from the supermarket!
Reviews of other organic produce box delivery services:
All Good Food
Naturally Organic
Eco-Organics
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