Organic vegetable box deliveries

[Debster]

Can anyone recommend a company/farm that does this? I am especially interested in ones that are local to the Brighton/Sussex area but am willing to go national if necessary.

What experiences have people had? What sort of veg do you get? How much does it cost etc etc?

Debster, I can't recommend any local to you but I have tried a couple in our area (south west)until we found one that was good for us. You usually get carrots, onions and potatoes and everything else is seasonal... which makes for some interesting and inovative cooking from time to time. Also - stating the obvious, sorry - it doesn't stay 'fresh' as long as non organic produce and two of the same items rarely look the same. The biggest problem we have found is that there are never enough onions or potatoes so we have taken to supplementing our box with organic produce from the local supermarket when necessary.

Simply organic has been recommended to me as a national box scheme but they have a £5 delivery charge and to be honest their presentation looks great but their boxes seem hugely expensive compared to local farm schemes.

Sorry about the spelling am loosing it this morning!

Not that this is of much use to Debster, but I use Grow Wild which serves Edinburgh & the Lothians and I think Glasgow as well. I pay £11 for a basic box, including delivery. I worked out that the same selection of (non-organic) veg from Safeway would cost about £8.50, so I think it's pretty good value as we don't have a car and live on the top floor. Some things do go off quickly, but others keep for ages. I like to support local producers, and I think it's less wasteful than everything being bought centrally from a huge farm in the South of England, then being distributed around the whole of the UK. I also find it makes me alot more adventurous and organised with cooking.

Debster

Is Forrest Row too far for you to travel? They have 2 GREAT organic community farms
Plawhatch for all dairy and veg
and Tablehurst for the BEST meat !
I am going to ask my local shop (West Kent) which has a scheme if the farm they get it from delivers in Brighton. I know they won the "Best Box in the UK" award last year but I don't know how far they go. They are close to the coast so there is hope they might do Brighton.

Simply Organic are expensive, but have been the best value I've tried by far - good range, nice looking produce, kept for longer, delivary when they say so. I'd rather use a more local service, but it hasn't been worth it for me - some areas are just better served than others

I got a catalogue through the mail the other day. It is called Seeds of Change and says it is naturally delicious food all year-round 100% organic, it has things in it like pasta, pasta sauces, soups, cooking sauces etc. www.seedsofchange.co.uk or 08009520000

Debster, I found the info... The box scheme is in Robertsbridge, it's called SCRAGOAK and their number 01424 838 420... maybe they have a system to deliver Brighton.

Has anyone used Abel and Cole? (limited deliveries nationwide, full service for the whole of Greater London).
We had a leaflet through the door the other day and were intrigued. The idea of an organic delivery service even acknowledging the existence of our corner of SE London (local shop is a Coop which does a good impression of a Russian shop pre-Glasnost) gave us palpitations.

We've been using Abel & Cole since November and I think they are great, and pretty good value. We've eaten a far wider range of vegetables that ever before, including things I wouldn't have bought - black kale and turnips. I really look forward to our delivery day to see what has arrived.

Also, because you have spent the money and another box is due in 7 days, you find that you do eat more vegetables tomake sure you don't waste them. I also get a sack of non-organic potatoes delivered every so often from our greengrocer because we eat so many.
I'd recommend them.

Thanks for that Copper, they replied to an e-mail requesting more info pretty quickly and helpfully, so we'll give them a try. I've been spurred on by the recent newspaper reports that the supermarkets (Sainsburys and Tescos being particular offenders) mark up organic fruit and veg by about 60% compared to direct suppliers such as A & C or farm shops. What's more, because the research was sponsored for the Soil Association by Sainsburys, the Soil Assn promptly "buried" the findings. Or so I heard.

We have been using Abel & Cole for about 18 months now and I would agree with Copper - much better quality fruit and veg than the supermarkets. They also include a recipe sheet each week which suggests ways of cooking what is in that week's box. They are also quite flexible about changing the delivery eg if you have'nt eaten last week's box yet!

We have been using Abel & Cole for about 18 months now and I would agree with Copper - much better quality fruit and veg than the supermarkets. They also include a recipe sheet each week which suggests ways of cooking what is in that week's box. They are also quite flexible about changing the delivery eg if you have'nt eaten last week's box yet!

We use Abel and Cole too, have used 3/4 others and they're the best. One of the things I really like is that they do a number of different boxes, deluxe/essential etc so you can choose what style of fruit and veg you want. Also you can change at short notice or have a different box every week. Their web site is pretty informative... finally, their bread and meat is excellent too.

would someone please be kind enough to confirm the url for abel & cole? i got www.abel-cole.co.uk through google, but this comes back with an error message...

thanks very much for your help.

Bossykate, hope it's here

WWW thanks very much - it worked!

Hi!

What about Swindon (wiltshire) area?

The Soil Association produce a booklet of local organic suppliers for the whole country. You can buy it from www.soilassociation.org, which has loads of other info on organics

just ordered my first two boxes from abel & cole - coming on friday. i await with interest to see how we will work this, or whether it will end up going off and in the bin!

Thankyou wickedwaterwitch I too will be placing an order and giving it a try!

Are any of you still using Abel & Cole? I have been using Food Ferry on and off for a few years, which is great because they do evening deliveries. The prices look about the same. I was put off that Abel & Cole anticipate leaving your box unattended when you are out - it would definitely get nicked where we live - what happens in practice? I still think a box from one of these 2 cos works out more expensive than just going and buying whatever organic veg is available in the supermarket, which is why I only get a delivery when I am really busy. If you just buy the cheapest organic veg on offer in the supermarket, it is always whatever is in season. I have just got the Boxing Clever cookbook, and am wondering whether I should join a box scheme. But, why is it supposed to be virtuous only to use locally-grown veg? There are so many exotic veg that I really love to cook. Why is it supposed to be not good from a fair trade perspective to buy organic veg which is grown in the 3rd world from a supermarket?

re veg going off before they're eaten: Lakeland do reusable plastic bags that allegedly keep the contents fresher for longer. Their catalogue has rave reviews in it and you can order from their website. I think they're great but I'm a saddo (who is blatantly doing no work today but posting on mumsnet all the time, could you tell??)

a lot of questions, outofpractice.

abel & cole give a fanstastic service and a great range of food. they have "exotic" stuff too although it is not air-freighted. how do they do it? dunno, polytunnels?

my box didn't get nicked left outside in brixton...

had to stop using the service as the stuff went off before we could use it. maybe if you are cooking from scratch every day, that wouldn't be a problem for you.

have a look at Friends of the Earth for more info on why these schemes are more environmentally friendly. as you know, developing world producers seldom get a good deal. foe touches on this but for more info look at Oxfam Fair Trade campaign .

hth and enjoy your veg!