“Imperfect Foods” Review

 Written by: Sarah Trost, SLU Dietetic Intern

What is “Imperfect Foods”?

“Imperfect is a food delivery service that was founded to fight food waste by finding a home for the imperfect of “ugly” fruits and vegetables that farms couldn’t sell to grocery stores”. This original concept has grown over time. The company realized that not only was eliminating food waste important, it is equally as important to ensure that the entire food system is improving for everyone.

This company is constantly working on plans to better the environment. Their current plans are aimed at becoming a net-zero carbon company by 2030. They are doing this by focusing on 3 projects:

1. Intentional sourcing: By 2022, Imperfect Foods will increase their regional sourcing by 15% to reduce the number of trucks moving and delivering food. I noticed this in my order specifically. They asked for my zip code and I was given a specific grocery delivery day, Wednesday, based off of where I lived.
2. Reducing waste to landfill: In addition to rescuing one billion pounds of food by 2030, Imperfect Foods will also create their first facility certified zero-waste-to-landfill operation by 2022. This was also something that was reflected in my order. There was no additional packaging in the box that was delivered to me. The box itself, along with insulation was all recyclable or reusable. There were very clear instructions laid out what to do with the extra materials in the box
3. Using energy responsibly: By 2026, Imperfect Foods is hoping to convert all of their fulfillment centers to 100% renewable power. Beyond the fulfillment centers, they also have a goal of having a fully electric vehicle fleet by 2027.

Ordering Process

The ordering process was very user friendly and individualized. Before placing an order, I took a short quiz for them to find out more about me. They asked how many eaters I had in my household, what size box I would like to receive, my food preferences, and what subscriptions I would like to sign up for. Their typical grocery plan includes a produce, plant, dairy, snack, meat & fish, and grains pack. This grocery plan comes with approximate prices for each pack, and it is easy to unsubscribe from any of them. For example, I could have easily removed the meat & fish pack from my plan if I was a vegan/vegetarian or if I just didn’t need any meat during that week. 

Like I mentioned before, my location specific delivery day was Wednesday. I also had a specific time frame during which I could grocery shop, which was Friday to Monday morning. Imperfect Foods curates a box for you that you can then customize if you decide that you don’t want an item or want something that isn’t on that list.

The payment for the groceries does not come out of your account until your box has been shipped. With the adjustments I ended up making to my box, my total for my entire order was around 70 dollars. For the week that I ordered, groceries over 68 dollars were offered free shipping. I did enjoy that perk. They also had a low cost box option for people that may need help paying for their box. There is a short application process, but, if accepted, the low cost box will be given with a 20% discount.

My Order

My curated order with some small adjustments that I made cost a total of 70.88 for 24 items, approximately $2.95 per item. Below is a picture of all of the groceries together.

Review

Overall, I was fairly pleased with my order. I enjoyed the process and found myself getting very excited about receiving groceries that I don’t normally pick up in stores. I also enjoyed the fact that I was supporting a company that is doing so much for causes that I care about.

As far as pros go for the order, there were many. I liked the variety with the groceries and I enjoyed getting to choose some of my own items as well. They typically deliver food that is in season, so a lot of the fresh fruits and vegetables were perfectly ripe. I loved the fact that I didn’t have to actually go to the grocery store; saving that trip also saved me from collecting more plastic bags as well. Receiving items that I don’t typically shop for got me excited to cook and eat meals and changed things up from the typical 5 or 6 meals that I always make.

On the opposite side, there were a couple of things that would keep me from ordering again. The biggest turn off would probably be the price. I know that the overall cost for the groceries was not outrageous; however, I typically spend a little less than 70 dollars per week at the store and I feel like I usually get the same amount, if not more items. The items that I did receive were awesome, but I don’t think it was enough to make meals for an entire week, which is what I normally do with my groceries. If you are used to shopping at higher priced grocery stores like whole foods or even target, I don’t think that the prices will be a big problem. Another small issue, which could have been user error, was that the website didn’t portray serving sizes very well. There were a couple of things that I ordered that looked a lot bigger online than they were when they arrived. This wasn’t too big of a deal though, and I believe that I would get better at knowing what to order as time goes on.

I do believe that I will order from Imperfect Foods again. I don’t think I am interested in a weekly subscription, but I could see myself ordering a box every couple of months to change things up a bit and support a great company.

 

Sources:

https://www.imperfectfoods.com/

 

Start Gardening ASAP!

 Written by: Will Sanders, SLU Dietetic Intern

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Are you aware of the potential benefits gardening has to offer? Gardening can provide more than just delicious low cost organic produce. Gardening is a unique learning experience unlike any other. Gardening has been an integral part of my life since I was a young child. As a college graduate student and intern I have been utilizing the university’s garden and gardens at local schools to educate children in the local community about nutrition.  

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Growing up

Gardening has been a fundamental part of my life since I was a young child throughout my years in high school. I assisted my mother in building and maintaining our home garden beds during the warm months. When I reminisce on those times, the fresh scent of mint and an abundance of ripe tomatoes always come to mind.

A couple years following planting mint in the ground, the plants multiplied so rapidly that they eventually took up one third of the garden. My mothers’ favorite crop has always been tomatoes. We grew a variety of different tomatoes in the garden, creating and testing new trellises in an attempt to find the best method for growing tomatoes. The plethora of mint and tomatoes available was utilized in the kitchen to make dishes like tabbouleh and capris salads. These two dishes quickly became favorites of mine (and they still are!). During the time spent with my mother in the garden, I learned a lot about how to ensure garden crops flourish and how to maintain and provide a bountiful harvest throughout the growing season. Picking from the garden and utilizing our harvest to make unique, colorful, fresh, and tasty meals allowed me to understand and embody the fruits of our labors, while simultaneously learning basics of nutrition related to the growth of food.  

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Current experience(s)

While attending Saint Louis University, I have lived in dorm rooms and apartments for the past 4-5 years during my college and graduate studies. Although there are opportunities throughout Saint Louis to continue gardening, my gardening and plant nurturing experiences remained limited during these years. My experiences were primarily isolated to working in my mothers garden during time spent at home while visiting family and to a few plants I attempted to keep alive in my living spaces.

During graduate studies, my interest in gardening was reawakened when we began a project that focuses on educating grade and middle school students in the city of Saint Louis about nutrition and gardening. This project teaches kids about gardening and it’s benefits through short and fun nutrition education lesson with activities that my classmates and I designed. Our first lesson this semester covered garden basics, such as what plants need to grow and thrive. During this lesson we planted some seeds for the kids to watch grow throughout our coming lesson plans. At the end of the semester, the kids get the opportunity to try some of the produce they have been learning about and growing throughout the lessons during what we call “The Salad Party”! 

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The Benefits

There are many benefits to gardening beyond the ability to eat what you grow. In fact, gardening can benefit our mental health, reduce stress, teach us about nature, nutrition and ourselves, and assist our wallets/purses. In modern times, there are many distractions in a typical day of life. When we become consumed with distractions around us, we can get stressed and out of touch with the present moment and ourselves. Gardens can provide opportunities to calm our minds and get in touch with our surroundings and selves.

To me, a garden is an escape from the busy world and distractions around me. While in the garden, I am consumed with the sights, sounds, and smells of the nature around me. While in the garden, my focus does not deter to the stress and distractions I experience on a daily basis. While in the garden, I am calm, content, engaged, and happy. Although I will experience some distractions and stress though out the rest of the week, these thoughts are absent in the garden.

As work is put into the garden, the efforts of labor can be visually recognized, even when miniscule. Maintaining a gardening space and assisting in the growth of plants is a satisfying process! If you are like me and the before/after process of things is exciting to you, then you will be amazed to see produce flourishing in what once appeared as a unsustainable garden bed. There is so much to observe and learn regarding the growth of different types of plants. The fruits of garden labor can be physically embodied following the harvesting, meal preparation, and dinning process

            Gardening can also provide a sense of community as well. Since it can be hard work, getting other friends, family, and community members involved is encouraged! Some mature plants can produce a lot of food if properly cared for, so we should share what we can with those around us. Don’t forget that garden can save us money. It is cheaper to buy seeds, grow them, and eat grown produce than it is to buy from grocery store.

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Start Gardening ASAP!

Gardening is an opportunity to better understand food and ourselves, both of which are easy to become disconnected from in modern times. I encourage you to begin gardening ASAP! I have listed just a few benefits of gardening which I have had experience with. I hope you can relate to and find these benefits and more during your garden future endeavors! If you are in a city or do not think there is a suitable place nearby to maintain a garden, consider searching for local garden beds/spaces for rent, assisting a friend or family member with their garden, and/or indoor growing options.