Food Boxes Increase Healthy Food Choices

Buying Local Produce Kick Starts Healthy Eating Habits

Apr 7, 2009

Food box programs in Canada, Japan and the U.S. operate much like large buying clubs or cooperatives, offering cheap local produce in support of healthy eating plans.

Around the world, volunteers and farmers are stepping up to improve access to local fruits and vegetables. The results are low-cost food box programs, food cooperatives and improved healthy eating habits.

A good example is found in the metropolitan area of Toronto, Canada where 4,000 boxes of fresh fruit and vegetables are delivered monthly to volunteer-coordinated neighborhood locations through FoodShare and its Good Food Box program. Such programs are now found in eight towns in the southern and central regions in the province of Ontario.

Healthy Food Choices through Cooperatives Popular in Japan, U.S.

In Japan, the Seikatsu Club is a food cooperative that began after World War Two. The club has grown to include 25 consumer cooperatives and 259,000 members, most of whom are women. The most active Seikatsu Club members spend about 70 percent of their total food budget on food from the cooperative.

In the United States, community-supported agriculture has evolved over the past two decades as a popular way for people to buy local seasonal food directly from farmers.

Community supported agriculture sites are found throughout the U.S. Farmers offer a certain number of “shares” and owners receive a box of produce in season every week during the farming season. A weekly share might include bell peppers, okra, tomatoes, beans, potatoes, garlic, eggplant and squash.

How Food Boxes Work

Most food box programs operate on the same type of principles. Twice a month, or weekly, people place orders often with a volunteer coordinator. Orders are usually by the box size and are sized depending on the household.

People pick up their order at a neighborhood location and enjoy a box filled with fresh, local and in-season produce.

Buying Local Produce Means Healthy Meal Plans

People pay drastically reduced prices for their food boxes. Each box usually contains the same mix of food and the contents change depending on the season and harvest. Prices for food box programs in North America range from a $5 small bag of fruits and vegetables to $32 for large box.

For example, a $17 food box purchased during the month of November in Toronto contains:

Food box programs and food cooperatives are a popular and healthy way for people to not only save money on produce but have constant access to fresh vegetables and fruit. The results are community based support for local growers and an injection of healthy eating habits.

The copyright of the article Food Boxes Increase Healthy Food Choices in Balancing Meals is owned by Shelley Aylesworth-Spink. Permission to republish Food Boxes Increase Healthy Food Choices in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.