What's a box?
Fresh food that's grown/reared/churned/baked/made as locally as possible and put into a box with as little packaging as possible and delivered to you. It's generally not done through a supermarket chain.
What kind of food do I get?
Some companies do loads of stuff. Abel and Cole does seasonal fruit and veg, meat, dairy, biscuits, pasta, pulses, rice, cleaning products, all sorts. Other companies just do fruit and veg, or just veg. With some companies everything is organic, with others it's not, with some you can choose.
Will it be tasty?
It will almost certainly be much more delicious than supermarket food. Once you get used to box food and then you taste supermarket food again, you’ll probably wonder how you ever put up with such blandness for so long.
Is it expensive?
It depends on what you get and who you get it from. Some costs less than supermarket food, some costs the same as organic food in the supermarket, some costs more. There’s no general rule so it’s best to check the ones near you and see which ones feel like a good deal.
I don't like cabbage. Will they put cabbages in my box and make me pay for cabbages I'll never eat?
Most companies have a way to consider your likes and dislikes, so if you hate broccoli or turnips or something, they give you something else instead. There is also a lot of choice over size and cost of box, whether you're getting a basic carrots-and-spuds box or a deluxe sweet-potato-and-wild-rocket box. Maybe try a few different boxes until you find one that works for you.
Will it be fun?
Yeah, it'll be fun. Someone goes shopping for you and puts amazing fresh food outside your front door. Sometimes you get really easy things like green peppers and carrots. Other times you find yourself wondering what you might possibly do with that bit of salsify, some kohl rabi or a celeriac. Then you go to The Nag’s Good Food Guide (or Jamie Oliver, or Nigella, or Delia…) and cook something you never expected you'd cook.
How do they deliver it if I'm not at home?
Give them a call and they'll work it out with you. If you have a front garden or a good hiding place, they'll leave it there. If you live in a flat you can give them a key to the main front door and they leave it somewhere discreet inside. There's usually a way. They even deliver to boats.
Will it all come covered in mud?
Yep.
Will some of it look ugly?
Yeah. It's bound to look ugly. There seems to be a rule that if it looks ugly, it probably tastes better.
