Prior to the food shortages that were sparked by COVID-19, I was looking for a better way to buy my produce. Don't get me wrong, I love the convenience of Walmart's pickup grocery service (we live too far out in the country to get delivery) but I was looking for a way to shop local or, at minimum, be smarter about my grocery shopping. The stay-at-home orders really underscored the need for us to actively seek other options.
Our hens cover our need for eggs and I have my homemade sandwich bread that everyone loves. That still leaves us lacking in the meat, dairy, and produce department though. We have big plans to have a large vegetable garden and fruit trees but all of those things come with time, and we've had a few struggles along the way (more on that later). I needed something to help in the interim.
I amped up my search for a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). If you're not familiar, a CSA is a way for a consumer to directly support a local farmer. Farmers offer shares to the public where you get a box of fresh produce that varies depending on whats in season. In my mind, it doesn't get much better than that. Bought local. Grown local. I highly, highly encourage you to check out your area to see what options are available to you. Bonus- local farmers won't have a shortage of eggs and produce if people start to panic buy at the grocery stores. This is a much more sustainable way to get your groceries. Another perk is that you are supporting a local farmer and his/her family, not just a big box store. You can find your local CSA here.
One of the downsides of my local CSA is that we get a box once a month. For my family of five, we needed something to go along with that box.
Enter Imperfect Foods. I absolutely love what they stand for. Their goal is to reduce the amount of food waste in our country. To date, they have saved 116 million pounds of imperfect food (after two boxes, we've personally saved 40 lbs of that food). The food that you get from them is 100% edible its just "different". Maybe the carrots are too big or the tomato isn't the perfect shape. Normally that food would be discarded because its not perfect enough to sell at the grocery store. Now, that food finds a home. Less food waste is a mission I can get behind! If you're interested in checking out Imperfect Foods, use this code and you'll get $10 off your first box!