Farmhouse Delivery Review #TIBIQ
Here’s some issues with the Grocery Store*:
Part of my obsession with Fiber (Check Out Fiber Fueled Here) means that I’m looking to get a wider variety of plants and vegetables in our diet. However, due to the “situation”, we also only get groceries once a week and haven’t been schelpping out to the farmer’s market either. And we all know, unfortunately, that if you just get all your fresh produce on one day but the end of the week, you have food waste or not a single fresh veggie. Additionally, fresh fruits and vegetables lose nutrients the longer the wait is between picking and consumption so if all of our produce is being shipped in, you end up with less nutrient-dense produce and of course, mass food waste. Finally, mass-produced produce is shown to be less nutrient-dense because it’s grown to be bigger but counter to the mantra of the great state of Texas, bigger has not shown to be better as to the nutrient profile or even the taste in produce. In addition,*** in-season produce tends to be the most nutrient-dense because it’s more likely to have been grown near you.
Uh, so. What…the heck are we supposed to do? Should we eat all organic produce and hope for the best? Well, first, the term “organic” has nothing to do with the nutrient profile and is tied to chemical pesticide use and that’s a topic to tackle for another day. One great way to get local (and therefore, fresher and more nutrient-dense), is to go your local farmer’s market. Part of the benefit there is that the food is local but also, you can chat with your farmers about any of your other questions - like types of pesticides used and regenerative farming practices. But I don’t know about you, but I really haven’t been trying to add stops to my out-of-the-house routine and because of the need for social distancing and limits on capacity, it makes it possible for there to be lines and/or limit people’s ability to browse or chat. Fair enough. If you’re familiar with what you’re looking for, that seems like a good option. If you’re like me and haven’t been a regular and/or you’ve gotten used to and love delivery, there IS another option. Cut to: CSA delivery services.
What’s a CSA?
CSA stands for “Community Supported Agriculture” and (for the most part) skips over the middle man and creates a more direct relationship between farmers and consumers.
Farmhouse Delivery is a bit of a hybrid CSA. Because consumers have a wide variety of items to choose from, they source from local farmers first, however, they will network outside of the local area from well-vetted vendors if they need to for a request.
How it Works
Farmhouse Delivery is well-known from their produce kit but they actually have a variety of subscription plans including produce, fruit, meat and meal kits. You choose the frequency of the delivery and it’s also very easy to skip a week or two if you don’t need it for whatever reason.
Pros
Well, it goes without saying, the quality of the produce is great. To the point that if they receive produce that doesn’t live up to their standards, they aren’t going to send it to you. That means unlike your Instacart shopper^, they aren’t going to give you unripe or inedible crap produce. Second, the variety of options on the website is dumb. It’s absolutely amazing and we’ve never had a bad thing. Third, that variety includes meal kits and groceries. This includes meat, tortillas, baked goods, etc., from local companies like El Milagro. And y’all!!! The quality of the meal kits is SO GOOD. While they do have a meal kit subscription, I normally get one a la carte and they’ve never let us down. Their shrimp in particular is so freaking good.
Just like shopping at the farmer’s market, using a CSA also helps increase the variety of vegetables eaten as it includes items you might not otherwise buy at the grocery store. If you like to cook like we do, it does give you an opportunity to be like…okay, how are we going to use this melon/squash/butterhead lettuce, etc.,
Also, the delivery comes during the week and our grocery shopping is done on the weekend. So, it does allow us to build our menu for the week around what we have and easily supplement additional produce that we want for the week during our grocery trip.
Cons
Real Talk: This is not a low-dollar option. You’re paying a premium for the quality of the produce. The Selfies as a household of 2^^get the smallest produce box and it costs $23. However, to get delivery you need to spend $28. To get free delivery, you need to spend $49. Additionally, the produce box itself can be very repetitive. I can’t explain how much butterhead lettuce and corn we’ve had this summer. In fairness, it’s seasonal produce. A season lasts longer than a week. I asked FD about this and essentially they indicated that: 1) If you HATE something, you can put it on a dislike list and 2) they have a huge variety of available produce so, just add additional purchases. I wish it was a little more customizable but I get it.
If you’re considering a CSA, I strongly suggest looking for discount codes online first. If you want to try Farmhouse Delivery, they do have friend referral codes, just hit me up! Otherwise, tell me! Have you used a CSA and/or how do you ensure you’re getting quality produce for your fam?