Veggies at the door – Fresh local produce and artisanal foods get more convenient

It’s Monday morning, and Country Table owners Lauren Beth Slowik and Kallie Culotta Svendson are gathering food.

Several local farmers have dropped off homegrown lettuces, mushrooms, asparagus and other spring produce at the partners’ tidy warehouse. Later in the day, Slowik and Svendson will pick up more seasonal produce from other farms, as well as fresh cheese, meats and breads from artisan producers. The women will place the items on a long prep station and assemble them into bundles. Throughout the week, they’ll deliver the bundles in crates with frozen water bottles to the homes of Country Table customers.

Country Table is one of a growing number of businesses in Baton Rouge and around the country that use personal delivery to make local foods more accessible.

Slowik and Svendson were exploring culinary business ideas last year when they stumbled upon the local produce delivery concept in other cities. A small group of business had begun functioning like middlemen between farmers and foodies, bringing orders of seasonal fruits and vegetables and artisanal foods straight to the doorstep. The partners launched Country Table in October.

Customers pay an initial fee of $35 and select between weekly or bi-weekly produce bundles that contain nine to 11 seasonal items. The cost of each weekly delivery is $37, or $39 for each bi-weekly delivery. It’s possible to add on other items, too, like meat, dairy, bread and sweets.

Slowik and Svendson say they’re constantly on the lookout for new regional farmers and producers. “It’s been going great,” says Svendson. “It’s been amazing to see how interested people are in a service like this.”

Within the first four months of business, 200 families had signed up for the service.

The local foods movement has been steadily gaining traction in Baton Rouge. The Red Stick Farmers Market turns 18 in November. Slow Food Baton Rouge and the Louisiana Culinary Institute have created annual farm-to-table dinners. And a growing number of local chefs are integrating farm-raised and artisan-produced ingredients to their menus.

But while interest in local foods is at an all-time high in the Capital City, it’s still not possible for many consumers, especially busy families with weekend obligations, to make it to the farmers market. Home delivery services make it a lot easier for locavores to access the items they crave.

IndiePlate, a similar venture, also opened in Baton Rouge at the end of 2013. Founder Paritosh “Peru” Sharma had completed a doctoral degree in chemistry at LSU last year, but he decided to follow his passion for close-to-the-source foods.

On his IndiePlate site, customers browse a healthy list of items, from Ryal’s Dairy Farm’s cheddar curds to fresh veggies from Chenier Farms. There is no signup fee and no minimum order. Delivery is usually within the same week. Like Slowik and Svendson, Sharma continues to recruit regional farmers and producers who are eager to reach a broader audience.

Sharma says the goal is to become an e-marketplace of high-quality, mostly local foods that are sourced only once an order is placed. A customer survey taken during IndiePlate’s first few months revealed the biggest motivation for signing up was convenience. The fact that the foods were local was secondary.

“It just shows how busy people are,” says Sharma. “And that they need something that makes life easier.”

Country Table countrytabledelivery.com
Indie Plate indieplate.com