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“We’re having daily conversations with our growers as to what they’ve got,” says Tourino. “People really want to do something good for the planet, and they’re looking around for anything they can do that actually helps. And buying a box of seasonal produce, imperfect produce, is probably the easiest thing you can do to help the planet.”
YFC, founded in 2017 by cousins Branson and Cara Cooper, currently service Sydney and Newcastle with seasonal produce, pantry staples, baked goods, meat, seafood and dairy products. YFC work with regenerative farmers, with almost everything grown within 250 kilometres of a customer’s front door, and require their 150 growers to meet a range of criteria. It’s about making sustainability convenient, Branson says, and educating consumers about their impact on Australian agriculture, the environment, and their health.
Loretta Woollard, from Melbourne’s Burwood East, doesn’t mind the imperfections in her weekly Farmers Pick box. For her, it’s a testament to quality and an easy way to feed her family of four.
“It might be funny-looking fruit and veg – some people might not like that – but it doesn’t do anything to the flavour,” she says. “It tastes much more organic and natural than things you might find elsewhere. You’re eating real fruit and veg.”
Loretta Woollard and husband Scott Woollard with their children Matteo and Emelia with their order from the Farmers Pick.Credit:Eddie Jim
Celebrating “imperfect” produce is a culture shift for some people, Tourino says, but he hopes businesses such as his will help consumers – and supermarket chains – reframe their idea of quality.
“You can have a ‘weird’ looking tomato: if you price that at 50 per cent of what a perfectly round tomato is priced at, you turn a lot of people off,” Tourino says. “Our mission is for eventually there to be no difference.”
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For each startup, produce moves from dirt to door within 48 hours, encouraging locality and eliminating travel miles. Ball encourages people to “cook outside the box and cook in season”.
“You can’t actually get cherries and stone fruit all year; that’s not normal and you shouldn’t be doing that,” says Ball.
The result is empowered consumers who can make a small impact on a changing climate.
“We’re going to see a greater frequency of these dramatic climate events,” says Branson. “We need to support our local food security so that when supply chains are fractured, we’ve still got food to eat.”
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