We are all adjusting to our new normal during this pandemic. One major adjustment is how we get our groceries. Many stores are limiting the number of persons inside and once you get through the long line and actually get inside the store, the shelves may not have any of the items you are searching for in-stock. Once the Shelter In Place Order began, I had to make some changes in order to get groceries into my kitchen. The biggest change I made had to do with me being more flexible with the foods I chose because so many foods were out of stock. I also had to make sure I was buying enough food to last at least one week.
With the hopes that it will help you navigate this new world we are living in, I’m sharing a roundup of the different types of services you can use to get meals on the table without actually going into a grocery store. There are a ton of food delivery companies out there, but I’m only sharing the ones that I’ve personally used to get healthy food on my table.
Grocery Store Order Online and Pick up: This is a great option for people that are used to grocery shopping in stores. You order directly from the store online and choose your pick-up time. During this pandemic, I’ve had to order anywhere from 1-6 days ahead of the date I wanted to pick up. Each grocery store has its own process for pick up. But they all have designated parking areas where you wait for your groceries to be delivered to your vehicle. My experience with this so far has been great. I pull up, notify the store i’m there, pop the trunk and my grocery order is brought out in a basket. Please check with your local grocery store for more details. Here is a shortlist of some of the grocery stores I have used this service with: Whole Foods, Target, Ralphs, Walmart, Fred Meyer, and Vons.
Personal Shopper App: Instacart is an app that sets you up with a personal shopper that shops for your shopping list. They stay in contact with you and ask for alternate items if something on your list is out of stock. They purchase your groceries then deliver them to your house. This experience is similar to an Uber experience where the shopper sends messages to you via the app and you see their profile picture and name before they arrive at your front door. (I’ve loved using this service for the last year but I know the company has had some hiccups in the recent weeks causing a long wait time to get a delivery slot)
CSA Boxes: Community supported agriculture (CSA) boxes are an amazing way to get fresh produce to your doorstep and support your local farmers. These boxes are filled with produce picked at it’s prime and loaded with vitamins and minerals. Produce starts to lose its nutrient content once it has been harvested. So this is a great way to make sure your produce is local and packed with the highest level of nutrition. The boxes range from approximately $27-$60 a box depending on the size.
Below are my top three CSA boxes that offer subscriptions. They offer organic produce delivered right to your door and you can add additional foods, dairy, meat, oils, etc. You can completely customize the box to your grocery needs.
Imperfect Produce: My #1 choice because of its mission to reduce food waste.
Farm Fresh to You: I love that I can add a beautiful organic bouquet of flowers to brighten my kitchen.
Farm Box Direct: These are great for smoothie lovers because they have boxes for “Juicing.”
JR Organics: This is for San Diego residents only. This is our East county organic farm that I’ve bought from for 5+ years!
Protein Delivery:
US Wellness Meats: Grassfed and pastured meats. This company stands the test of time with quality meats. They make wonderful sausages and organ meat blends. They also offer quality bones for making bone broth and excellent wild salmon!
Butcher Box: Grassfed meats with the best-tasting bacon around! They also offer subscriptions so you can order once and have it delivered on the interval that works best for your family. This has been the most affordable way to get grass-fed and finished meats into our freezer.
Vital Choice: This company offers the highest quality wild seafood options. They offer great protein options to stock up on from frozen fish to canned options. I trust that all of their seafood is well-sourced.
Pantry Staples: Outside of your regular grocery shopping or amazon there are a few ways to get healthy pantry items delivered at a discount.
Thrive Market: is an online market with healthy groceries at a discounted price. I really like to get pantry items from Thrive because I save money while getting the quality brands. They have a huge inventory of healthy options! Some of my regular purchases are seaweed, almond milk, coconut wraps, nut butter, lentil pasta, sprouted oatmeal, nuts, seeds, and clean beauty products, etc. Thrive has a membership similar to Costco with monthly or yearly options at a reasonable price.
Vitacost: is another online market with supplements and pantry items. They always have good sales and have discount codes you can use for purchases. They carry a lot of my go-to brands. This is a great option if you prefer to not pay for a membership.
Meal Ingredient Kits: If you enjoy cooking or want to learn to cook this can be a great resource for you. The kits come with every ingredient you need and the recipe or recipe videos. There are many meal kit companies available with different price ranges with organic and non-organic options.
Sunbasket: This company delivers complete meal kits with everything you need to make a restaurant-style meal in the comfort of your own kitchen. They have easy to follow instructions and high flavor meals with all organic ingredients. They offer meal kits for breakfast, lunch, and dinner that are easy to fit into any dietary plan. The flavor of the meals never disappoint!
There are also many non-organic meal kit options to check out such as freshly but I can’t speak to these companies because I haven’t personally tried them.
A quick note about availability: Many of these services have gained huge popularity since our shelter in place order. As the companies adjust to the increased demand, availability of the services changes daily - so please check with them directly for updates. )
((This post was written for the Adaptology.health blog . Please check original article here ))