Review & Giveaway: Farm Fresh Delivery

by julie on July 8, 2010

I am a busy lady, between travel, work, blogging– sometimes I just don’t get to go to the grocery store, much less a farmer’s market.  This isn’t so good, because I really like to shop local, and there’s nothing better than the locally-grown fruits and vegetables we can find in southern Ohio. When someone in my building suggested Farm Fresh Delivery as an easy way to get groceries, I jumped on it– particularly since a few days later, they were available on Groupon.  I got my first box at a discount, and have been hooked ever since.  I can’t believe I haven’t blogged about them sooner!

The concept is simple:  organic and local produce, delivered to your door.  There are a bunch of different sizes of boxes– fruit only, extra small, small, medium, and large bins.  You can also add other local and organic produce and other groceries to your order, all delivered to your door.  My box this week (which is delivered on Tuesdays), was pretty great, and included:

  • local sweet corn (Stout’s Melody Acres)
  • local red beets (Elmwood)
  • local green beans (Feel Good Farm)
  • local squash (Feel Good Farm)
  • local cucumber (Elmwood)
  • local broccoli (Stout’s Melody Acres)

I also got some pluots, peaches, grapes, avocados and strawberries.  The box was $35 and worth every penny.  I’m looking forward to some steamed corn, pickled beets, and munching on lots of fruit this week!

It’s also super convenient– I can suspend an order when I travel, or add items to my standing order, or substitute if there’s something in the list I don’t like or won’t use..  We always get Snowville Creamery skim milk, and I’m addicted to their Arrowhead Farms herb chevre.  I also get wild, sustainable salmon, Dean’s Farms chicken (which is amazing) and I just got some really fantastic local cottage cheese made from grass-fed cow’s milk. You can get spices from Herbs and Spice and Everything Nice, Seven Hills coffee, and Bourbon Barrel Foods (their sorghum is really nice).

The produce is always great quality– they deliver to my door, and they pack the box with plenty of ice to make sure the milk and meat don’t spoil in hot weather.  If you get product that isn’t up to par, they’ll replace it or credit your account.  I don’t get everything from them– when I have time, I like browsing the farmer’s market at Findlay too much to avoid it (and the heirloom tomatoes!  Can’t wait…).  But if you like to experiment with fruits and vegetables, or if there’s a certain farm whose products you like (like my Snowville standing order), this is a great option.  They also send out this great recipe newsletter that helps with figuring out what to do with some of the more unfamiliar vegetables (what to do with pea shoots, for example).

So– Farm Fresh Delivery has offered a free delivery to one of my readers!  To enter, choose any or all of the following to get your entries.

1. Comment with your favorite local food or vegetable finds, and no, it doesn’t have to be from FFD.

2. Tweet about the contest

3. Blog about the contest (and post a comment with a link).

The contest will end Friday, July 16 and the winner will receive one free delivery.  And nope, they haven’t provided me with a free delivery (aside from the half-price Groupon),  I just really love the service!

  • RLeinberger

    @winemedineme I’m obsessed with @FarmFreshCincy!

  • Jonni Lynch

    I’m glad to read your review…I’ve considered this for many months, gone to the website, started to fill out the form and backed out. Just never heard anything about it from anyone. I, too, love the art of shopping for my food, but there are just sooo many wonderful local products out there that I simply don’t know about.
    Our lives are busy with the addition of the little one, so this might help me stop wandering the aisles of Kroger at 1:00 am!
    Thanks!

    • Katie KS

      I agree with you – kids make food shopping a need to be fast necessity. The closest two grocery stores to me have really bad produce so I thought this would be a good option. I can do my monthly “stock up” shopping for staples at the better store 15 minutes away, stop in to the closer ones for milk and forgotten items and have the fresh stuff delivered to my door!

      • Jonni Lynch

        I sometimes manage, but even with lists, my head is often so scrambled, I walk out with half of what I came in for (and usually none of it goes together :) )…the last organic produce (especially apples) I bought from our Kroger were AWFUL. 4 apples, not one edible…brown all the way through, but pretty from the outside (?)…
        My sil in Indy has a great at-her-door delivery like this one from a local CSA–she only goes to Target for toiletries and cleaning supplies, now!

  • Katie KS

    My favorite find IS FFD. We just signed up over the weekend and our first box is set to show up next Wednesday. I can’t wait – just hope we can convince the baby to try pluots (I have never had one either, so … should be fun!)

    • Jonni Lynch

      I’ll try anything to get Violet to more than the myriad forms of grilled cheese and grapes she’s so fond of!

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  • Josh

    Two of my favorite finds are from the Northside Farmers’ Market.

    There is a stand there with a variety of microgreens. Fresh, delicious, and nutritious. Also, another stand there has sampler boxes of produce for $5.00. I got one a couple weeks ago with cabbage, tomatoes, a small eggplant, a candy onion, a few zucchini, and a handful of small pickling cucumbers.

    I’ve never tried out FFD, but have heard of it and would love to give it a whirl.

  • Sarah

    My fav local finds seem to always be from Findlay. It used to me my favorite thing to wake up early on Saturdays so I could take in the whole farmers market, especially fresh corn! But I’ve started a job where I work alot of Saturday and Sundays ..and I snagged the FFD groupon..so I’m gonna try this out.

  • Jennemy of the Skate

    I tweet it! I love Findlay too. The best times to go are Saturdays when the local farmers are there. We load up on all the veggies, especially tomatoes since my favorite summertime meal is caprese salad.

  • Caroline

    I’m a fan of the Brush Creek Cooperative at the Montgomery Farmers’ Market. They have all sorts of goodies like summer squash, homemade breads and egg noodles. Earlier in the season they had garlic scapes and ramps.

    I also love Blue Jacket Dairy that can be found at West Chester Farmers’ Market and Madeira Farmers’ Market. Their Gretna Grilling Cheese is to die for!

  • Brian

    Yes! FFD is great! My dinner and dessert last night came right out of their box :)

    I have to say though that, so far this year, my favorite food find was the U-Pick strawberries at Berries & Blooms in Loveland. It made for a fun morning adventure, and some delicious strawberry crisp and homemade ice cream. YUM.

  • MS

    Gotta say, local favorite for us is Blue Oven Bakery bread. We ate an entire loaf on the drive home the first time. We are now officially addicted to local produce as well and are totally disappointed anytime we have to buy at Kroger!

  • http://www.hoperatives.com Carla

    We’re lucky enough to live very close to the Boone County Farmers Market. There are lots of great folks there, but one of our favorites is Kinman Farms. We tend to park near them so we can scope the other booths, but we also know we’re going to buying something from Kinman.

  • Melissa

    I love FFD! My husband chuckled about my reaction to our delivery on Tuesday- I feel like a kid on Christmas morning! I, too, signed up for FFD after the Groupon was offered. I love providing my family with local organic foods and I feel great about supporting local farms. Organic food DOES taste better- the sugar snap peas this Spring were to die for and we find ourselves eating food I normally would not purchase (kale, beets, buckwheat lettuce and some salad greens). Plus, we find ourselves eating less at dinner because of the veggies I prepare on the side. I’ll leave you with my final thought- I bought Georgia peaches from FFD 2 weeks ago to make a pie. They were just ripe when delivered, but I didn’t get them in the pie until about a week or more later. They were ripe and absolutely delicious- not a bruise anywhere. A couple of days later I stopped at a Meijer’s to pick up some raspberries for a 4th of July cake and watched as an employee tossed peaches to rotate the stock. That is why peaches bought at a store ripen and rot at bruises so quickly!

    I could go on and on…

    (P.S. That was the best peach pie I had ever made!)

  • Michelle

    I haven’t tried FFD yet, but I have a coworker who loves it. This would be a great opportunity to try it out (fingers crossed that I win).

    I have to add another nod to Findlay Market. It’s so great to walk around and see all the local farmers. I also stopped by the Ohio Valley Antique Mall this Tuesday for their inaugural farmer’s market, which was great.

  • http://ourgoodfoodlife.blogspot.com Jen

    I go to the West Chester Farmer’s Market which is near Lakota West and I was thrilled that Morning Sun farms were there to sell some organic, free range chicken and eggs. We cooked a 3lb chicken last night that I bought there two Saturdays ago and it was fantastic–top notch. Worth every penny. I will be going there again Saturday and I hope Morning Sun comes back every week.

  • Jessica

    the local peaches i got at Findlay Market last week have been SO YUMMY! I love strolling around the market with flowers in my hands and produce in my basket!

  • Sheila I

    I do both the CSA Earthshares at Grailville & FFD. The CSA is great because I do the option where I work on the farm weekly, and it is amazing to see things grow, harvest it, and then eat it. My kids think it is so cool & love eating the veggies from the farm!

  • Christa

    I love, love, love my CSA with Gravel Knolls Farm. The share cost is reasonable ($375 for the season) and my favorite part, in addition to knowing where my food comes from, is that it inspires me to try new recipes and experiment and play with my food. I never really know what will show up and how I will enjoy it.

    I’ve participated in various CSA in the past and this by far is my favorite!

  • http://howidealwithmycrazylife.blogspot.com/ Jessica E.

    I heard about FFD about 6 months ago (via the Pasta Queen) and have been intrigued by the concept and company ever since. I’m a busy lady and outside of my attempt to visit Findlay every week (which doesn’t always happen) I’m stuck with either no food in the pantry or grocery fair. My freezer, however, is usually always stocked with Ohio-raised poultry, beef and pork from Turk Brothers Custom Meats, Inc (which is located near my parents house in Ashland, Ohio…where I grew up). It comforts me to know I’ve actually been to the farms where my meat comes from, I’ve seen how they treat their animals (with respect, as it should be) and it’s a mom and pop place! Plus, the meat is ridiculously good!

    Also, for the first time recently I made the trip out to the West Side to visit Country Fresh Farm Market on Vine. Amazing peaches…and so affordable!

  • Antoine T

    I love going to Findlay Market for locally grown produce. I also have discovered Country Fresh Farm Market, good fruits!!

  • Jonni Lynch

    Guess I should probably post my favorite find and maybe I’ll win an opportunity to try FFD!

    Besides our own homegrown vegetables (peas, onions, green beans, lettuces, pumpkins, tomatoes, etc…) I buy all other veggies from the Boone County and Kenton County Farmers markets. As far as grass fed beef, dairy, etc…I take a monthly trip to Paris, Kentucky, along with my cooler, to a regional farm market called “Bourbon County Farmers Market” which sells local beef, pork, poultry dairy, orchard and vegetable products, as well as local honeys, jams, etc…
    Well worth the trip!

  • Laura

    I agree with you about the Snowville milk. We love it. It always seems to keep even past expiration, too. Wandering Findlay is a favorite Saturday event…produce, fish, goat cheese ravioli with red pepper sauce, Dojo Gelato….yum!

  • Theresa

    While the selection isn’t huge, I love that Wilfert Farms sets up a booth of fresh produce right along my drive home from work.

  • Ray

    I’m a Findlay Market fan

  • Kel

    I LOVE Snowville milk and Blue oven bakery – we grow a lot of our own stuff, but have thought about this to supplement those items. I might have to try this.

  • Lisa

    There is a new farmer’s market on Saturdays from 10 – 1:30 in Mt. Lookout on the playground behind Cardinal Pacelli School. It is small, but we found some delicious, fresh corn. One of the farmers there had some yummy baked goods along with a variety of meats. The monster cookies were delicious!!
    I share your love of Snowville milk. I’ve never tasted milk so good. Last summer the farmer from Snowville Dairy came to Biggs in Hyde Park to make ice cream and I missed it…I’m still bummed. Maybe he’ll do it again???

  • Angie

    So excited to find this review! I just signed up for this service over the weekend and am really excited for our first delivery this week. With a baby who has just started on solid foods, I’ve been searching for a convenient way to shop for fresh organic foods so that we get her started off right. I’m anxious to start preparing fresh fruits and veggies for her and to know that it’s local and organic is a great bonus! As far as a local favorite … we’ve always been fans of Rouster’s Apple House.

    Thanks for the review – So glad to hear that you’re experience with FFD has been wonderful.

  • Brian S

    Blueberry picking at Rouster’s Apple House in Milford, Ohio is awesome! This year the family came home with 37.5 lbs of fresh-picked blueberries, harvested in just over 2 hours. It took 4 days to freeze them all. Yum!

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