Imperfect Produce Review – Worth Trying?
Despite increased awareness about sustainability and health, the people have the world are constantly increasing the amount of food they waste on a daily basis. Not only are people wasting food, but they’re wasting good food. Healthy food.
While the waste that people produce on a daily basis is staggering, the amount grocery stores produce surpasses expectations. In the United States, about one out of every five fruits or vegetables grown get thrown away because they don’t look the way grocery stores want them to look. These imperfections can be minor, a carrot that isn’t straight enough or an apple that is slightly larger or smaller than normal. However, these little idiosyncrasies cause these fruits and veggies to be thrown away, completely wasted.
Imperfect Produce is trying to end this problem of extreme waste. Working with farmers, the source of all the amazing fruits and vegetables provided to grocery stores, Imperfect Produce is able to get amazing discounts on food and pass these discounts on to its members. In an effort to change how people buy, sell, and use fresh produce, Imperfect Produce is changing the world a little bit at a time.
What is Imperfect Produce?
Imperfect Produce is a company that hopes to change the way the world does produce. Based in San Francisco, Imperfect Produce works with local farmers to find produce that doesn’t meet the criteria set by grocery stores. These ‘ugly’ fruits and vegetables are usually thrown away, tossed into a landfill and completely wasted, just because of the way they look.
By saving these imperfect fruits and vegetables, Imperfect Produce is able to offer them at a 30% to 50% discount to its members. Through the Imperfect Produce subscription delivery service, members will get their discounted produce delivered right to their doors, giving them a weeks’ worth of delicious, funny looking fruits and veggies.
Not only does Imperfect Produce hope to cut down on the huge amounts of food waste that plague this country, they also strive to help people save money, eat better, and support the local farmers in their area.
The Benefits of Imperfect Produce
There are three main benefits of using Imperfect Produce. It was these benefits that drove the innovative founders of Imperfect Produce to start the business in the first place.
The first benefit is that the business is completely sustainable, which means it won’t be running out of produce anytime soon. Every single year, more than 20% of the produce grown in the United States is turned away from grocery stores due to being the wrong shape or size. Despite this being a huge problem, it was one that was being ignored by the masses. Not only was it wasteful, but it caused huge problems in the environment. However, with Imperfect Produce, this is no longer an issue. The food that was once wasted is now finding its way to homes that can’t wait to eat it.
The second benefit of Imperfect Produce is that it is extremely affordable. The founders of Imperfect Produce go to the farmers who provide food to grocery stores and get the produce that would normally be thrown away. The farmers give Imperfect Produce huge discounts on this food, discounts that are then passed on to the members of the company. Not only does this make buying fresh produce more affordable for the members of Imperfect Produce, it also helps support local farmers.
Finally, Imperfect Produce is very convenient. Not everyone has the time to run out to the store and pick up fresh produce every week. This is why Imperfect Produce delivers these amazing fruits and vegetables at a discounted cost straight to members’ doorsteps. Now, without even needing to leave the house, people can get delicious, inexpensive, and unique-looking fresh produce delivered as often as they want.
Imperfect Produce’s Service Areas
Unfortunately, because Imperfect Produce is such a young company, it is only able to deliver in specific places in California. These areas include:
- San Francisco
- Oakland
- Piedmont
- Berkeley
- Albany
- Alameda
- Emeryville
In addition to delivering to these areas, Imperfect Produce also has several pick-up sites, where members can come get a box of their choice. In addition to offering Imperfect Produce for pick-up, Imperfect Produce will also donate any unpurchased boxes at the end of the day.
Pick-ups can be made in Oakland, Lafayette, Concord, and Meryville.
Imperfect Produce Membership Options
As mentioned above, Imperfect Produce is a membership program. This means, those interested in using the Imperfect Produce service must sign up for membership, picking a subscription to get a box every week. These boxes are delivered on Saturday or Tuesday, respectively.
The membership options are listed below.
- Produce Box (Small) – $11-$13
- Organic Produce Box (Small) – $15-$17
- Vegetable Box (Small) – $11-$13
- Fruit Box (Small) – $11-$13
- Produce Box (Medium) – $14-$16
- Organic Produce Box (Medium) – $22-$24
- Vegetable Box (Medium) – $14-$16
- Fruit Box (Medium) – $14-$16
- Produce Box (Large) – $20-$22
- Organic Produce Box (Large) – $33-$35
- Produce Box (Extra Large) – $25-$27
- Organic Produce Box (Extra Large) – $39-$43
