If you eat as much organic fruits and veggies as I do, we probably have the same complaint — Hauling produce seems almost like a part time jobs sometimes, especially when combined with a car-lite lifestyle. I try to keep my eats as local as possible by shopping at the Melrose Farmers Market on Sundays, but usually, my weekend haul runs out — by Tuesday. And all the local community supported agriculture (CSA pick) up spots near me are just too far away for me to walk to.
Enter Farm Fresh to You. This CSA program stretches the definition of local organic CSAs a bit — because a lot of the produce comes from farther away. The company’s own farm’s 90 miles northeast of San Francisco in Capay Valley — and the produce boxes are supplemented with produce from other farms, some outside of California.
Still, Farm Fresh to You sounded a lot greener to me than the stuff at Pavilions and Trader Joe’s (the two grocery stores walkable from my place) — so when the company offered a special of $25 (usually $31.50) for the first delivered box at the Go Green Expo last month, I signed up!
And I’m glad I did. My fruits and veggies arrived on the appointed day in a neatly packed reusable box — fresh and ready for eating. I wished there was a little more variety — or more specifically, why six yams? — but I did end up eating them it all — in a few days!
Farm Fresh to You makes online customization easy. For more local produce, you can select the “Capay Valley Organic Service,” and all your produce will come from farms in Capay Organic Valley — though you’d have even less variety at that point. Don’t like a veggie? You can add items to a “no” list — like I did to broccoli after my first delivery (I can’t digest the stuff). And plastic shunners can opt against the plastic bag that the leafy greens come wrapped in.
At $31.50 for a regular box, the service is a little more expensive than most local CSA pick-up programs — but almost $20 cheaper than the other local produce delivery program I’ve tried, Farm Box LA. However, Farm Fresh to You is also less local and has less personalized service than Farm Box LA, which is run by a local L.A. woman who gets her goodies straight from the Hollywood Farmers Market.
In fact, so far, Farm Fresh to You has delivered my first two boxes to the wrong apartment complex — despite the fact that I put a note in their system advising them of their mistake after the first week. I plan to call them this week — and hopefully haranguing them via voice will ensure actual door to door service next week.
Want to try Farm Fresh to You yourself? Use the code 6164 for a $5 discount. Mention my name and they’ll give me a discount for the referral too!
Earlier: Locavoring in a box: Organic CSAs in Los Angeles
I was with Farm Fresh to You for a monthly delivery for about a year and just left. Mainly, I was getting annoyed with delivery problems.
Comment by Zach — May 12, 2011 @ 11:44 pm
I’ve used them for awhile and never had any problems! The produce is delicious :)
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Comment by Monica — May 13, 2011 @ 9:32 am
i had problems with other CSA’s before….am curious about this one!
Comment by lynn @ the actor's diet — May 13, 2011 @ 9:39 am
I just signed up for a once every two weeks delivery… let’s see how it goes… thanks!
Comment by Heather — May 13, 2011 @ 11:48 am
I use them and I’ve only ever had one delivery error (it actually got delivered to a completely different complex so I never got the box – I called and they cleared it up easily).
Because I take the bus and walk, picking up my own CSA box every week was kind of a pain. Having it delivered makes me a lot happier.
I do make use of their exclusions list, especially if I’ve gotten too much of the same veggie a few weeks in a row and just want to not have it for a while. I like that so many options are online, so it’s easy for me to change the delivery schedule or update my exclusions. I get the veggies only, so I can’t speak to the fruit, but I’ve been really happy with the veg quality and quantity.
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Comment by Rachel (heart of light) — May 17, 2011 @ 4:49 pm
It is very important for me, the food comes from a place close. And the produce is local produce. So I know not invested much energy to bring the food to me at the table. From what I see here is not found at first.
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Comment by joe — May 19, 2011 @ 12:43 am
DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE! They came to our door and flat out LIED about a free trial box. Once we cancelled, they claimed there was no free trial and continue to bill us.
There are much better CSAs out there, I’m reporting this one to the BBB.
Comment by JB — October 25, 2011 @ 11:11 am
If you are ever in the Bay Area I recommend a similar service. I also had problems on Farm freshes’ website and couldnt even sign up for a box. My friend Laurie told me about a service she used and their website worked, unlike farm fresh. So farm I have only had two boxes but I love them. They were from http://www.goldengateorganics.com. After getting my produce from them I wouldnt go back to a grocery store. Theirs is so much more fresh.
Comment by Dave — November 9, 2011 @ 9:48 pm
Don’t bother using this service. You are better off going to a farmer’s market.
I had this service for about three months and the produce was good. My problem with them is customer service. I signed up for service at the LA. county fair, where i was told that i would receive an invoice for my deliveries. A few days later i received an email stating that a credit or debit card must be on file in order to receive deliveries. I followed the instructions to sign up for their online account and looked for the option of receiving an invoice for payment and not auto-pay. It did not give that option. Now they are taking money automatically out of my account and not sending invoices. I spoke to a customer service rep about the situation and basically i was told there is nothing they can do for me. So if you are expecting to receive an invoice you better check your bank account because they are very sneaky and unprofessional that way.
I was also told when i singed up at the fair that you have the option of choosing which fruits and vegetables you would like to receive. There is no such option it gives you a small amount of choices of items you prefer not to receive, which they sent to me anyway.
Comment by jann p. — December 7, 2011 @ 11:06 am