YOUR INDUSTRY
FRESH2U FULFILS NEED Words by Anne Hardie
Lucy Maxwell’s organic delivery business is in growth mode
Lucy Maxwell has been packing and delivering organic produce to customers across the Top of the South for eight years, then Covid-19 created a “year of complete madness” that pushed her business to a new level. It prompted her to leave the farm shed where she had based her business all those years, to the ample space and chillers of The Food Factory in Stoke, Nelson, which was established for start-up businesses or those wanting to grow their business. Since lockdown last year she has needed “more hands on deck” and a new system to cope with demand. She was doing up to 17-hour days through lockdown, and though many of those customers were temporary until they could get back out to the shops themselves, a good percentage liked their home deliveries of organic food and became regular customers. Lucy sources organic vegetables, fruit, juice and eggs from about eight growers and suppliers who are mostly local, apart from those with produce that cannot be obtained locally. Produce arrives at her base on Tuesday and Wednesday morning and three part-timers help her fill the cardboard cartons – some recycled from customers – with either the customer’s specific requests, a mix of
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NZGROWER : MARCH 2021
Fresh organic produce delivered to homes
fruit and vegetables that are available at the time, or solely vegetables. Orders are couriered as far as Picton and Hokitika to customers wanting fresh organic produce delivered. “We’re a trend. The organic market is growing and people like to know where their food is coming from.” Some customers only want certified organic produce such as Organic Farm NZ (OFNZ) which has a pod system that works on a peer-review process. It is more work but helps keep certification costs down. Other customers just want to know the food is grown organically. Lucy puts out newsletters on her website and includes as much information as she can about all the growers so customers can make choices. She says her customers know that she is the person writing the emails and newsletters and she wants to make the choices available that work for them.
Until you have a reason to buy organics and to value organics, you aren’t going to pay more money
