Growing Good’s Box Scheme Technology
Over the past few years, local veg boxes have emerged as a way of getting healthy, sustainable food right to your door.
Locally sourced fruit and veg reduce air miles, and food grown organically means fewer carbon emissions from synthetic fertilisers.
Plus, they’re a useful source of income for farmers – but establishing them takes expertise and time to keep up to date, which can distract from vital farm work.
The organic sector is innovating to solve these issues. Growing Good, established in 2023, have created software that allows farmers to easily set up an ordering system, cutting down on admin and helping good quality produce to get to local people faster.
Growing Good started when Steve and co-founder George Bennett – an organic grower and former engineer – found the process for setting up their own scheme was complicated. They were confident that others would be having the same issues – and after looking at the costs for having an external agency build this for them, they decided to set up their own technology company.
Growing Good Founder Steve Sidhu said: “The technology gap between big operators and small local growers is huge – we’ve invested a lot of time and money into enabling anyone to use our software, regardless of whether you sell 10 or 10,000 veg boxes a week.”
After launching in 2023, their first client, Sandy Lane Farm set up with them, offering a variety of veg box sizes and options like fresh bread and eggs.
They exceeded their expectations – in the first year, veg box sales grew by 30%, despite not doing any more advertising – and in the middle of a cost of living crisis.
This allows them to spend less time on admin and more time working on the farm – and the peace of mind of a regular income stream.
Steve said: “Profit can be hard to come by – the money they generate can be invested in growing and improving the business, hiring more staff – or maybe taking the first holiday in a while.”
Sustainable food for everyone
The 2024 Organic Market Report has shown that the organic market grew 2% in 2023 to reach £3.2 billion – heavily influenced by innovations such as this, which help get quality organic food to more people.
Additionally, simplifying the process means more locals have access to the farm, strengthening their ties to the community and helping re-build local networks.
“We now have a wide variety of users, including family farms, entrepreneurs, local food hubs, organic stores and community market gardens,” Steve said.
“Enabling a profitable future for small organic businesses ensures their sustainability.”
Coming into the second year of launch, Growing Good aim to increase their client base further, further removing any barriers to organic food.
“Whether your concern is around climate, biodiversity, the health of our water systems, the diet of our children or reducing future pressures on the health service, making healthy, organic food more accessible and affordable will help move us in the right direction.
“Selling organic veg boxes might not change the world overnight, but it's a great place to start.”