Could A Box Scheme Increase Your Profits?

Latest figures show that the popularity of veg box schemes has increased significantly in recent years, with sales topping £100 million last year. In fact, these new must-haves now represent around two percent of UK grocery market activity.

Most box schemes are organised around the delivery of a weekly supply of locally-harvested vegetables, direct to the customer’s home, or to a neighbourhood pickup point. Some farms grow all the produce for their customers’ boxes, but most will supplement shortages or provide more variety, by buying in from other local producers, so this isn’t something that only farm shops with farmland can consider.

Moreover, it’s not only vegetable that are popular, organic meat boxes have also seen increased interest, with companies like Abel and Cole servicing consumers with meat, fish, veg, fruit and even ambient goods.

For a farmer there are many advantages - not least the opportunity to hang on to those profit margins that would normally go to the wholesaler or commercial buyer. On the flip side however, customers expect variety, which can prove challenging and labour intensive.

Wayne Davis at Ambrosia Farm Shop in Northamptonshire offers an organic box scheme, mainly to local customers. He says that the marketing side of the business is difficult as there are some big players, but that interest is certainly growing. “I wanted to have a box scheme, I believe in the service and I enjoy it,” says Mr Davis. “We get all types of demographic in the shop and I have noticed that awareness is increasing.”

He recommends that other retailers consider box schemes as a viable addition to their service. “They are such a fantastic idea and are much more environmentally friendly as they use the same box and no packaging,” he says, concluding, “People need to support small local schemes and local business, it’s the only way for them to achieve a healthy respect for food and understand seasonality.”