How do you rate your veg box?

Firstly, thanks to Alison Blenkinsop for pointing out this website devoted to preventing the unhappy sequence of events that leads to vegetables ending up in the (compost) bin. It contains dozens of recipes for using up every imaginable vegetable as well as a search engine so you can find your nearest veg box scheme. This was a subject I covered in my Body&Soul column here, which has sparked some debate, not least from Olivia Abbot who is deeply suspicious of veg boxes. "I think you should warn readers that they should question the origins of food in veg boxes just as they would from a shop and not assume that because it's delivered to their door it's necessarily local produce."

Comments

[DavidW]

I live in north london and i'm very happy with my box from bumblebee, even if a little weary of fennel...

I would also be interested to try a box from Riverford because I've heard they're great. Does anyone have a Riverford box?

[Tom]

I tried Abel and Cole for a while and every week we had to claim some sort of refund for mouldy produce, overripe split tomatoes and squashed things. I originally signed up as I thought it would be fun to get a surprise every week and stimulate my cooking, but in the end it was more hassle than it was worth (and expensive too). Now we have joined our local fruit and veg co-op in Fulham at St. Andrews Church and we get a big bag of fruit and one of veg for a fiver - bargain! It's not all organic (the horror!) but it is fresh and very tasty.

[ClandonMan]

In my part of Surrey as well as Sussex and Hampshire we're fortunate enough to have the services of Farm Fresh Express who deliver the exact number of seasonal, local vegetables you want from farmers in the 3 counties, but also deliver poultry, meats, dairy, bakery, grocery and home eco products. They aim to ensure the farmer/supplier gets 60% of the retail price. They deliver once a week and use maize-based bio-degradable bags. I rate them 100%.

www.farmfreshexpress.co.uk

[Jane]

We get a Riverford small veg box every Tuesday and it is absolutely fantastic. It is not expensive, the produce is organic, fresh and delicious, and it has really increased the range (and amount) of veg we eat. I have also found that having a box of vegetables delivered to my door once a week has reduced the amount of food I buy unnecessarily - I no longer pop out to the supermarket to get some fresh veg and end up with a shopping trolley of things that have caught my eye on the way.

[Jane]

We get a Riverford small veg box every Tuesday and it is absolutely fantastic. It is not expensive, the produce is organic, fresh and delicious, and it has really increased the range (and amount) of veg we eat. I have also found that having a box of vegetables delivered to my door once a week has reduced the amount of food I buy unnecessarily - I no longer pop out to the supermarket to get some fresh veg and end up with a shopping trolley of things that have caught my eye on the way.

[Kim]

riverford rocks! We were with Abel and Cole about 4 years ago, but like another post above, got ick of poor quality even rotting product, so we are now with Riverford and haven't looked back. I love it, the quality is amazing, really fresh and actually lasts a while too (preventing me from throwing things away as I did with Abel and Cole). The other thing I love is the weekly letter from Guy Watson, who rants and raves, showing how pasionate he is!

[joe]

I agree - it is sometimes almost impossible to tell where the products come from in a veg box. Even just saying 'UK' might mean they've travelled most of the length of the country. We wondered how hard it would be to live on a diet exclusively sourced from within 100 miles. No ingredients, no manufacturing or processing outside of the area.

So that is what we're doing for Lent.

http://livingsimpler.wordpress.com/

[Brian]

I completely disagree with Kim about Abel&Cole giving mouldy veg. I love my box from them. They are a great company - yes, sometimes, you get too many cauliflowers, but lump it. Boil themf or five mins, then fry them with cumin and lemon for the best side dish. [rpoblem solved.

This week someone nicked all the meat and juice from my Abel&Cole box on the doorstep. They left the veg, mind. So much for five a day... A&C were extremely helpful and offered to refund the value of the stolen bangers. I've never had rotten produce from them and find I spend a lot less than at Ocado because I'm not bamboozled by all the choice and special offers, and the produce lasts longer. I also by Ecover products plus dairy produce, wine and beer.
Anyone else had their food nicked?
Outraged of Islington

[Tom]

Sounds like other people have been luckier than me with A&C. We had produce that had gone green and with furry mould on it, week after week. Maybe we just had bad luck.

Outraged of Islington - do you have the same A&C delivery man who has taken to leaving the box at 6.30 in the morning? We only ever get veg so probably not an issue for me.
Maybe A&C have improved, in 2 years I've always had squeaky fresh stuff in my box except for one punnet of bad strawberries. I also like the flexibility of not having to have it every week and being able to cancel a delivery.

[Neil]

Riverford is great, reliable, good quality, good information/newletter - the only negative is that it is not exceptionally local for all the stuff. Though apparently this still works out far more carbon friendly than supermarkets, presumably because of their centralisation of each function.

The contents of the boxes cannot be altered or removed, but you can change each week (mini, small, etc...) and add extras from their list. We don't have a standard order and decide each week based on the predicted contents and whether we are around etc.

[Outraged of Islington]

Re the Abel&Cole drop-off time - as far as I can tell it's lunchtime. I agree about the flexibility and I particularly like the way you can rotate things - eg sausages every three weeks, or whatever.