Veg Box: With regret...

It is with regret that I have made the decision to give up on the Veg Box scheme with Abel & Cole. As those that follow the blog are aware, I have been investigating its value for money and how it works for us as a family.


The weekly comparisons demonstrated that the box certainly wasn't the most economical way of purchasing organic, seasonal veg, although some weeks it proved to be much better value than others.

The joy of it being is a surprise once a week has been sadly replaced with a slight impending sense of disappointment. I think the straw that broke the camels back was the box before Christmas, (when the South of England was suffering extreme cold and wet weather) which contained a large proportion of salad items. Now to me that isn't doing what the preacher preaches. How can tomatoes, lettuce and spring onions be classed as December seasonals?

Surely, one of the main points of the box scheme is the sense of working in harmony with the seasons. Yes, I know that people do eat salad all the year round and I imagine that 'market forces' would be the business decision behind this - but quite frankly, for a cook, 4/10 items being salad is like a rainy birthday. I expect the winter boxes to be stacked full of squashes, brasicas, leeks etc.

The other reason is  my sense that the box is being bulked. By this I mean that lower cost produce is being used to bulk out the 'look' of the box. This was especially the case with the great big floppy lettuce, which has been an almost weekly addition since JULY and the celery that has also featured at a greater frequency - as it's not in season, it has proven to be stringy and tough and invariably ended up in the compost heap.

One of the other recurring bug-bears has been the addition of produce that just is not big enough to stretch to feeding four people. We get the £19.00 Large Family box, which in my mind should mean that if there is a cauliflower, or aubergines, or sweet potatoes, or peppers then it should be in enough quantity to make a serving for four. Too many times one of our veg has been just enough to feed two people. How can you serve four people on one red pepper?  Even the cauliflowers have been so small that they barely make a Sunday lunch spoonful - not alone a staple veg dish like cauliflower cheese for a family.

Then in two of the last four weeks, we have had produce that is either off or has such a short shelf life that it has looked unappetisingly tired. (We had broccli that had a mould patch growing on it and A bag of kale that went yellow within two days of being in the fridge.)

There are still positives about the scheme. It is undeniably convenient. Ethically, the idea rocks! It is comparable with other retailers, and certainly consistently cheaper than Waitrose. The element of surprise (when it is a more imaginative box) is certainly fantastic for a cook. Every now and then there is a little surprise in the box - such as a lovely globe of garlic this week and a mini mince pie the week before Christmas and a calendar (which we seem to have received twice)

So in short here are the following reasons why we are sadly giving it up

1. Not particularly good value for money.
2. Not seasonal.
3. Not varied enough.
4. Quality of produce. 
5. Quantity of produce. 

So our next exploration is going to be the Farmer's market in Twickenham. I'm planning on taking exactly £19.00 in cash and seeing what I get for my money. Stay posted for the results. 

Obviously, this is just the experience of our family and I am sure that there are many families and their cooks who find the veg box scheme works for them really well. I'd love you to post your comments and to open up a discussion on the merits and fall backs.