This past week, we were in a real estate contract to purchase a home on some acreage, with a barn. As my husband, “The Farmer,” who hasn’t officially been a farmer in seven years, walked the land with me, I saw his face light up. He was giddy. So was I. Ever since we sold our farm, farm land has been out of reach for us, financially. We have been on neighborhood lots, where we haven’t even been able to raise chickens. While our life has been easier, for sure, we have missed raising animals for food.
You may have noticed the word “were” in the first sentence, and might be wondering about that. We terminated our contract to purchase the property after speaking to the county. See, what looked like a farm wasn’t really a farm. We could have raised a few horses there, and up to eighteen hens, but no roosters (the same amount allowed on a quarter acre lot throughout the county). The hens could be for “eggs only,” so we wouldn’t be able to raise broilers in chicken tractors on the rolling hills of pasture. We couldn’t have cows eating the fields of grass, or even raise a Thanksgiving turkey, or, my favorite–ducks. We could have raised horses. But we are not horse people, and people don’t generally eat their horses. We wanted to raise animals for food. The property is zoned “Residential” and the goal for the entire area is to develop it into neighborhood lots, so no raising of food is allowed, besides a few laying hens. (I call 18 “a few” when I compare it to the 100 to 200 we had free-ranging on our farm in Oregon).
While it may have been a good financial investment to purchase land that will eventually be subdivided and built on, if you have read my blog at all, you know that living through such a transition would have broken my heart. I never want to see a farm divided up into neighborhood plots where people can’t raise their own food. I treasure America’s farmland and want to preserve it for the sake of our future grandchildren’s health.
In our county in Oregon, we could have raised small animals if we owned a half an acre or more. I know many people with “mini farms” in Oregon, and we didn’t ever think twice about zoning restrictions. There were neighborhood restrictions, in plush neighborhoods where everyone had manicured lawns and high fences. Of course, the neighbors with the green lawns didn’t want animals disrupting their neighborhood. The county didn’t keep people from raising food, though. We live in Virginia, now, and these zoning laws are foreign to us. We had no idea that we would have to ask permission to raise food if we were purchasing a home on acreage, with a barn. We thought, for sure, it was big enough, and it wasn’t in a neighborhood, so it was a farm.
Can we talk about, for just a moment, how incredibly stupid these zoning laws are that do not allow people to produce their own FOOD?! Who, in their right minds, thought it was a good idea to make it so that masses of people, in their perfectly designed neighborhoods, would be dependent on the “system” for food?
I can’t prove a sinister plan brewing, except that it lines up with the UN’s “Sustainable Development Goals” or Agenda 2030 and the Great Global Reset: they want the government to own our food, and to move everyone–every human body–to the city. The UN predicts that in just nine years, 2/3 of the world’s population will live in cities. (They also have a goal of reducing the population, so imagine 2/3 of a smaller world population than current numbers, all living in cities). We don’t necessarily have to move to make this happen. All they have to do to is re-zone the country–it’s not farmland anymore, it’s residential, and it appears that nobody can do anything about it.
In fact, I called the county and asked “How can we get it rezoned?” I was told that this would take months and thousands of dollars in a public hearing. All of the neighbors would be able to speak at the hearing and share their complaints. We would have to prove that us raising farm animals–food–on the beautiful acreage with the barn–would be beneficial to our neighbors and not just to us. What?! Since when did people raising food become a nuisance to the neighborhood-dwellers? Since when did raising food have to be proven, in a public hearing, to be beneficial for the local environment and population?
You guys know I’ve dropped the ball on writing here, for a long time. Since we haven’t been farmers, it has been hard to know what to write about. I tried writing a book about our farming experience in 2020 and it made me cry. I had to stop writing. But these stupid zoning laws have me FIRED UP about agriculture again. I don’t know if we will be able to afford a home on land that is zoned agricultural, sadly. I pray we can–because I want to raise my own food and write about how to do it. Raising food is a lost art. We, as a country, are dependent people…dependent, disconnected people.
My dad told me recently that Bill Gates owns most of America’s farmland. It’s true. We have seen, over the past year, how the tech giants can control our economy (advocating lockdowns while their online stores thrive), the information we are able to get, our communication, our elections (calling one side “fact” and censoring another as “false”) and more.. Do we want the tech giants controlling our food—-our very livelihood?
If they take away our ability to fend for ourselves, to eat what we grow in our own backyards, no matter the size, they can control us. I hope that people understand this. Nice neighborhoods with perfectly manicured lawns won’t sustain us. We need food. We, as eaters, have to fight against these ridiculous zoning regulations. It is not okay for the government to deny our right to producing FOOD.
I don’t know where to start to fight this. I thought I would share our experience today, and raise the issue. I would love to hear from you–are there zoning laws, where you live, that prevent you from raising animals for food? If you are raising animals for meat, what size is your lot? What do you think we should do about this? How do we fight it?
With empty shelves at the grocery store, I noticed that many of the convenient cuts of chicken were missing, while whole chickens were still available. It may feel, to some people like there is “No food” left when their only option is a whole bird. Or maybe, that cooking a whole chicken is far too inconvenient. Maybe they would rather purchase breaded chicken varieties, which are still available at our stores, than a whole bird.
When my family started raising chickens, I became alarmingly aware of how spoiled we are to think that we should be able to eat various chicken parts any time we want to.
Eating Whole Chickens is Better Stewardship of Our Resources
How many times per week, month or year does the average family eat boneless skinless chicken breasts? Does your family eat the other parts of the chicken, or do you prefer one cut?
Most people don’t realize how many chickens had to be butchered so that they could have that part that they prefer. If one family of four had chicken breasts twice per week for an entire year, 208 chickens would have to be raised, butchered and processed in order for that family to eat 104 meals.
If there is a trend in chicken consumption and most people lean towards, one cut of meat for a season chicken farmers are left scrambling, needing to find uses for thousands, or possibly millions of other cuts from those birds.
When we lived on the farm and butchered our own chickens, we never had boneless, skinless, conveniently cut chicken. Since we were cutting the birds ourselves, we decided that these cuts of meat were not worth our time or effort. Instead, we cooked whole chickens every week and made large pots of soup, as well.
We used nearly every part of the chicken, including the feet. A friend who had cancer at the time told me that chicken feet stock soothed her tummy after her chemo treatments more than anything else. The pot of chicken feet broth was ugly to look at, but so nourishing.
Let’s look at the numbers, if a family of 4 was eating whole chickens twice per week. They would end up using 104 chickens in a year’s time. And as a bonus, they would have at least two pots of broth to use for two more meals per week. It would take 104 chickens and, with the broth, the family would get 208 meals out of those chickens. This is not only more economic, but it’s better stewardship of our resources.
We get so used to the conveniences we have that most people don’t connect this kind of information.
Eating Whole Chickens is More Economical
Not only is it better stewardship to use 104 chickens instead of 208, but let’s think about the cost. You know I don’t promote eating “cheap,” factory-farmed meat from big name grocery stores, I believe FARM FRESH is best, but for simple math, let’s go with Walmart pricing:
104 meals of Chicken Breasts at approximately $1.41 per chicken breast, times 4 per meal, equals $587, or, $6.54 per meal. This is a cheap price for chicken breasts. As I am sure you know, they are often quite a bit more expensive, so you are probably spending more than this.
104 meals of Whole Chickens at .97 per pound, with a 5 to 8 pound bird. This is $4.85 to $7.76. You can make at least one pot of broth (we often make two) out of a whole chicken, so the total amount of meals would be 208. A 5 pound bird twice per week for the year would cost $504.40 for 208 meals, or $2.42 per meal. An 8 pound bird twice per week for the year would cost $807.04 for 208 meals, or $3.88 per meal.
Eating Whole Chicken Can Enable You to Eat Farm Fresh Meat
If you’re used to spending the money for chicken breasts, you might as well splurge and spend that money on a good, healthy, farm fresh chicken! Run two pots of broth with your farm-fresh chicken to make sure you use every-bit of goodness
Eating Whole Chicken is Environmentally Friendly
You know I’m not one of those environmental protestors who thinks that everyone ought to be vegan, right? I do love the environment that God created for us. I don’t think cows are ruining the planet. I do believe that factory-run farms are terrible for humans, animals, land, and air.
Here’s the deal: if a family of 4 uses 104 chickens per year instead of 208, we won’t need to raise as many chickens for each family. If everyone switched over to this habit, we would need far less chicken houses, where they raise thousands of chickens in less-than-ideal conditions.
Eating Whole Chickens is Healthier
The broth is really what I want to talk about. When we eat chicken parts without the bones, we miss out on the goodness of homemade broth. Homemade broth is one of the staples of the GAPS Diet, for good reason. Broth has many health benefits!!
It contains minerals that are hard to absorb from any other food: magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, sulphur, and phosphorus.
It contains essential nutrients: collagen, gelatin, chondroitin, glucosamine, proline, glycine and glutamine. Let’s break some of these down:
I place the bones from my leftover whole bird in the crockpot.
I add some onion, carrot, celery, and a little garlic. I don’t measure these, I just add what we have on hand. I don’t finely chop, I just add a whole carrot, a whole stalk of celery with the leaves (or ripped apart if the whole thing doesn’t fit in the crockpot) and 1/2 or 1/4 chunks of a whole onion.
I add a splash of apple cider vinegar to pull the minerals from the bone, salt and pepper.
I fill the rest of the crockpot with water, and then run it, on low, all day or overnight (be careful to set up your crockpot in a safe location so it doesn’t catch fire!).
When it’s done, I strain the broth and then add more water and veggies and start over.
Do you cook with whole chickens very often, or do you opt for pre-cut chicken parts?
Microgreens are the best bet for getting quick food that packs a punch when it comes to nutrition. Don’t pull them all the way up, just snip off some of the greens and let them re-grow. Microgreens are tender and can be eaten raw. Create a fancy restaurant environment in your home by serving microgreens next to a steak!
These microgreen mixes are easy, but you don’t need a mix like this. They may contain seeds of arugula, beets, cabbage, pak choi, kholrabi, broccoli, kale and radishes. If you’d like to grow microgreens, simply harvest some of these vegetables after 14-28 days. Leave some growing for later harvests of the full-grown vegetable as well. The vitamins and nutrients in your microgreens will depend on the type.
2. Radishes
I don’t love radishes, but they are one of the fastest growing vegetables in the garden! The variety of radish does not matter as much as some of the other vegetables, because almost all radishes grow quickly. Still, you can have Early Scarlet Globe radishes as soon as twenty days from today–and Dragon radishes in forty days. Take your pick from the list below, or others that you find:
Did you know that you can roast radishes like potatoes? You might give it a try, since potatoes take quite a bit longer to grow and harvest! Radishes are also packed with more vitamins than potatoes. They contain vitamins B6 and C as well as the fat-soluble vitamins A, E and K. Mashed radishes, anyone?
3. Mustard Greens
You’ve heard of the tiny mustard seed, but did you know that you can eat the greens? Mustard greens can be eaten fresh or sautéed. They are packed with vitamins A, C, K, folate and the mineral manganese. Mustard greens can be grown quickly, and these varieties are good choices:
Mustard greens have a spicy, peppery flavor that is sometimes described as “grown up.” If you don’t consider your palate to be grown up, you may not enjoy them.
4. Swiss Chard
Pay attention to the type of swiss chard you choose, because some may take longer to grow. Swiss chard is delicious sautéed in olive oil with garlic and then finished off by simmering in some broth, salt and pepper. When you sauté swiss chard it will shrink quite a bit, so plan for more than you think you need. Swiss chard contains the vitamins A, C and E as well as the minerals calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium.
Note that like microgreens, you can harvest swiss chard early. Simply trim some of the greens off to eat and then let the plant re-grow.
5. Purslane
Purslane is a tender green that can be eaten raw or cooked. It is similar to spinach. Notice the twenty-four day difference between the two purslane varieties listed below:
Purslane contains the vitamins C, B, niacin, riboflavin, pyridoxine and the highest vitamin A level of any leafy green. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin and you can get too much of it, so don’t over-eat purslane.
6. Arugula
Arugula is one of my favorite vegetables! I enjoy eating raw arugula on top of a fried egg, a lightly cooked tomato slice and drizzling the whole thing with olive oil. My kids don’t love it as much as I do, but that’s okay. They’ll grow up.
You can treat arugula like a microgreen and trim greens off of it as soon as they appear to be edible. Or, wait 28 to 35 days for the full grown version, using one of these varieties:
Arugula contains vitamin C, folate, beta carotene, magnesium and fat soluble vitamin K. Eat raw or cooked, though raw is most preferable.
7. Asian Greens
Asian greens are a hybrid and are tender like lettuce but flavorful like collard greens. They are a good source of vitamins A and C and can be eaten raw or cooked.
The first time I heard of okra was at a Peruvian restaurant in Portland, OR, Andina. Fried okra was presented an alternative for bread, and they served it with several dipping sauces. Personally, okra didn’t make me feel very well. It’s a starchy food and it contains fructans, which are irritating to some people’s guts.
Lets talk about the good stuff in okra. It contains more minerals than any of the above listed foods, including calcium, copper, zinc, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, and the vitamins A, C, K, B6 as well as folate, niacin, riboflavin and thiamin. One cup of okra contains 1.9 grams of protein.
Pay attention to the variety you choose, as the varieties listed here will either be ready in thirty days or fifty:
The diet Trim Healthy Mama uses okra in a variety of ways, including in smoothies.
9. Mesclun Salad Mix
Mesclun is really just a mix of a variety of lettuces that are harvested before full maturity. You’ll see mesclun mixes in plastic clamshells at the grocery store. The nice thing about growing your own is that you get to choose what’s in it. The vitamins and minerals in your mesclun mix will depend on the greens it includes. In just thirty days, you can be eating home-grown salad!
Spinach, with an exception of canned spinach, is amazing. I grew up with canned, microwaved spinach (like Popeye!), as I imagine a lot of kids in the 80’s and 90’s did. I’m not sure if baby spinach was a “thing” then? I didn’t know that fresh spinach, sautéed in oil with garlic or shallots could be so amazing. It’s also good for you! Spinach contains the vitamins B6, B9, folate, C, E, K, carotenoids and the minerals calcium, magnesium, iron and potassium.
11. Pac Choi
Pac Choi is a little version of Bok Choy, a member of the cabbage family. I use it in a stir fry with onion or green onion, garlic, ginger, carrots, coconut aminos and a sweetener like honey. You can other veggies as well, of course. Pac Choi can be harvested between thirty and fifty days of planting the seed and tending to it. Pac Choi contains vitamins A, C, K, B6, riboflavin, folate, thiamin, niacin and the minerals phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, manganese iron and potassium. Choose from the following varieties:
If you’ve never had broccoli rabe, also spelled broccoli rabb, you’ve been missing out! It’s tender and has a milder flavor than broccoli. It also looks elegant on a plate! Serve it with your steak, microgreens and mashed radishes. Choose from varieties like these:
Broccoli rabe contains vitamins A, C, K, folate and the minerals calcium and iron.
13. Watercress
Watercress is from the same family as broccoli, kale and cabbage–the brassicas. It contains the vitamins A, C, K and the minerals calcium and manganese. It’s known as a super food because it contains 100% of the daily recommended amount for vitamin K.
After removing the thick stems, you can eat watercress in a salad, sauté it or add it to a soup. It has a bit of a spicy, peppery flavor. Note that the varieties listed below are harvested at dates twenty days apart:
Kale is a nutritional powerhouse and contains vitamins A, C, K, B6, thiamin, folate, riboflavin and the minerals iron, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, calcium and potassium.
You can eat kale in salads, soups, or as kale chips. Wait until it’s full-grown at forty to fifty-five days, or, harvest young, as a microgreen.
Sorrel is related to buckwheat and rhubarb. It has a sour, lemony flavor. Amazingly, sorrel is traditionally used to reduce inflammation of the respiratory tract. It may be a good time, indeed, to grow, harvest and consume sorrel. It’s also a diuretic. If you are prone to kidney stones, eat limited quantities of sorrel. While sorrel can be eaten raw, it is typically cooked into soups and stews. The varieties listed below have a twenty-day difference in time to maturity.
Miner’s lettuce is an edible weed. You’ll want to grow it intentionally because it’s a fast-grower and contains vitamins A, C and the mineral iron. Eat miner’s lettuce raw in salads or as a garnish over protein.
It’s funny that kohlrabi makes me think of Asian food, because it’s called the “German Turnip.” It contains vitamins C, B6, thiamin, folate, and the minerals copper, potassium, manganese, magnesium and phosphorus. It can be eaten raw in salads and slaws, or it can be steamed, sautéed or added to soups.
Eggplant, typically eaten cooked, contains vitamins C, K, folate and the minerals potassium and manganese. Have you ever made a homemade Ratatouille? You’ll need some eggplant! Note that the fastest growing variety below is a container-garden “baby” plant.
Most cabbage varieties take around sixty to eighty-five days to reach maturity. One, Tundra, takes one hundred eighty to two hundred and twenty days! Catrina is the only cabbage variety I could find that can be harvested in less than sixty days:
Cabbage can be eaten raw or cooked. I cook cabbage in good-quality butter and serve it as a side that way. Cabbage contains vitamin B6, folate and vitamin K, as well as manganese, magnesium, calcium and potassium.
20. Lettuce
One of the benefits of growing your own lettuce is that you get to experience what tender greens taste like. These greens are too fragile to transport and sell in a grocery store, so you can only enjoy them by growing them yourself or purchasing them from a farmer’s market.
Depending on the variety, lettuce might contain the vitamins A, C, folic acid and the minerals iron, calcium and potassium. Choose a variety that takes forty-five to fifty-six days to mature, and feel free to harvest sooner, like a microgreen.
There are a couple of summer squash varieties that can be harvested within sixty days. Many take longer, approximately seventy-five days, so make sure to choose one of the types below:
The different varieties contain vitamins A, C, B6, folate, riboflavin and the minerals magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Eat raw or cooked, and make muffins, a pasta alternative and even zucchini lasagna out of this versatile food!
22. Cucumbers
Cucumbers often take longer than sixty days, but there are a few varieties to choose from that can be eaten between forty-five and fifty-two days after planting. Cucumbers are typically eaten raw or pickled.
Cucumbers are packed with the mineral potassium and also have small amounts of the vitamins A, C, K and the minerals magnesium and manganese.
23. Turnips
Turnips are typically eaten cooked in soups and stews. They contain several vitamins, including A, C, K, E, B2, B6, folate and the minerals iron, magnesium, manganese, calcium, copper and phosphorus. Try the following varieties for a quick harvest:
If you’ve never tried corn salad, you’re probably picturing yellow corn with black beans and pico de gallo, or quite possibly, corn with some tomatoes, greens and feta cheese on top. Corn salad is actually a leafy vegetable with a nutty flavor. It contains vitamins A, C, B6 and the minerals magnesium, potassium and iron. Wait fifty days for it to reach maturity or treat it like a microgreen and harvest sooner.
You may consider green onions a simple garnish, but they contain quite a few nutrients and shouldn’t be overlooked. They contain the vitamins A, C, K, B6, thiamin, folate and the minerals magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, zinc, copper, calcium, iron, and potassium. Use the following variety in order to eat within fifty days. Other types take sixty five days or longer.
Onions are such a staple vegetable! Most varieties take well over sixty days, and the beloved Walla Walla Onion takes a whopping one hundred and twenty five days to grow! The song “Have Patience” from my old Music Machine record is suddenly going through my head! The only variety I could find that takes less than sixty days is this one:
Onions contain vitamins C, B6, B9 and the mineral potassium. Grow in succession in order to harvest onions regularly.
27. Cherry Tomatoes
You won’t be able to grow large-variety tomatoes in less than sixty days. Typically, they take eighty-five days or longer to mature. Some varieties of cherry tomatoes are a different story, though. I recommend the following types:
Tomatoes contain the vitamins A, C, K and the mineral potassium.
28. Beets
Beets are a powerhouse food! Seriously, beet juice is listed as one of the recommendations for nearly every ailment in Signs and Symptoms from a Functional Perspective! Beets contain vitamin A, folate, and the minerals manganese, iron and potassium. Eat them raw, juice them or cook them. I personally think they taste like dirt, so my solution is to juice them and drink it quickly in a shot glass. However you get it down, make sure you do it! Eat (or drink!) your beets! Try the following variety for an early harvest. Otherwise, you will need to wait sixty-five days or longer for your shot of dirt juice. I mean beet juice.
Depending on the variety, beans may contain vitamins A, K, folate and the minerals calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese and phosphorus.
30. Cauliflower
Cauliflower can be eaten raw or used as a substitute for potatoes in potato salad or mashed potatoes. You can also cut cauliflower finely and use it in place of rice for a low-carb dish. Cauliflower contains the vitamins C and K and the minerals calcium, potassium and magnesium. Most varieties will take sixty to one hundred and ten days to reach maturity, but these types can be harvested sooner:
Almost any variety of carrot can be grown and simply harvested early, as a “baby” carrot. The following varieties reach their full size in less than sixty days:
Snack on carrots, roast them, or make a salad over them. Carrots contain beta carotene, biotin, vitamin K1, vitamin B6, and potassium.
32. Collard Greens
Eat your greens! No, truly–collard greens may not be a favorite food, but they are certainly good for you! They contain vitamins A, C, E, K and folate, as well as the minerals calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. That’s a mouth full! Fill your mouth with collard greens in the form of a raw or cooked dish. Either way, make sure to choose one of the following varieties in order to harvest them in sixty days or less.
Like tomatoes, the bigger version of peppers will take longer than sixty days. Typically, bell peppers take sixty-five to eighty-five days to grow. While you can eat peppers green, technically, they aren’t ripe until they are red, orange or yellow. They will be sweeter and more nutrient dense when they are ripe.
Peppers contain vitamins A, B6, E, C, folate and K1. They also contain the mineral potassium. Eat raw or cooked, just make sure to choose one of the following varieties in order to harvest within sixty days.
If broccoli rabe wasn’t enough, you can also harvest full-grown regular broccoli within fifty-six days! Eat raw or cooked in any recipe you like. We often make stir-fries with broccoli or add it to a homemade chicken Alfredo. Broccoli contains the vitamins C, K, folate and the mineral potassium. Choose the following variety, or your broccoli will take seventy to eighty-five days to reach maturity.
Peas can be harvested right about at the sixty day mark. Sugar snap peas are amazing raw and right off the vine. They are also packed with nutrients. They contain the vitamins A, C, K, thiamin and folate. They also contain the minerals phosphorus, iron and manganese. Most varieties take sixty-one to eighty-five days to reach maturity, so choose from the following in order to harvest within sixty days.
I love that I live in a time when food can just arrive on my doorstep. What a gift! It’s making that lazy life I spoke of yesterday so much more attainable. But really, as a mom of five kids (ten and up!), we go through a lot of food. Grocery shopping usually feels like a giant task to me. By the end of the trip, the cart feels heavy, and then I have to put it all in the car? And bring it in the house? Then put it all away? And cook it? It’s tiring, for sure!
I first heard of and signed up for Imperfect Foods, which was previously called Imperfect Produce, in October 2018. At first, I weighed all of the food to make sure I was actually getting good prices. I keep track of food costs on a pretty detailed spreadsheet. The first three or four orders were good deals or at least comparable to grocery store prices, give or take a bit. I stopped weighing the food and just kept ordering after that.
My First Imperfect Foods order (Called Imperfect Produce at that time)
I kept my Imperfect Produce deliveries coming either weekly or twice per month from October 2018 through the end of August, 2019. I stopped the service just as we were listing our home for sale and preparing for a giant, cross-country move. Over that time, I spent over $2,000 on Imperfect Produce, an average of a little less than $200 per month. I even had a separate budget category for Imperfect Produce in YNAB and sometimes “stole” from other categories just to get more veggies. I really liked the service and enjoyed the products. I should mention, at that time, we were living in Oregon.
We moved to central Virginia at the end of January, 2020. By February, I signed up again! They had changed their name to Imperfect Foods and were now carrying decent quality meat. Delightful! I was excited to start up again. How soon could I get my first box?! I increased my Imperfect Foods budget to account for the addition of meat.
My First Order Was Okay
I’m like a giddy little kid when I get fresh produce at the farmer’s market or when it’s delivered to my doorstep. It’s seriously like Christmas for me. I think vegetables are beautiful! I opened my box with utter joy. I didn’t anything alarming with the very first delivery we got in Virginia, so I happily ordered again. The next one was disappointing. And then the next one…And the next one. Here is a photo of the box I received on February 26, 2020:
My Imperfect Foods Order February 26, 2020
Here are the problems I see with this order:
Only one pack of turkey is sitting on the ice, the other is next to it, but not touching any ice.
Both packs of turkey were completely defrosted, with no ice crystals, and were of a questionable temperature. I ended up throwing it away.
There is no insulation in this box, anywhere.
Vegetables and fruits that are traditionally eaten raw are sitting directly on top of or next to raw meat packaging. In fact, blueberries had spilled and landed on top of a raw turkey package. Eww.
After the previous order, an employee from Imperfect Foods had texted me to make sure my big order looked good. I still had that phone number, so I sent a picture of this box and mentioned my concerns. The employee responded:
“Oh no!” I’m truly sorry about that. Normally the meats are packaged in an insulated bag.”
They gave me a full refund for the box and said they they were forwarding the issue to their packing team. I wished they could rush out a quick replacement order, because I wasn’t able to use foods I had counted on in my menu plan. I didn’t ask for that, and they didn’t offer…
I Hoped It Would Be Better the Next Time…
My Imperfect Foods order March 10, 2020
Again, the meat was not on the ice pack. There was insulation, but not an insulated bag. There was nothing separating the vegetables and fruits from the produce. The meat was at questionable temperatures, with no ice crystals. I sent a text again, and got no response. Later that day, I got an email response.
“To do our best to prevent this in the future, I flagged your next several boxes for double-checks. This means our pack team will check your box one last time before delivery to help ensure the quality is great and the quantity is right on. Want to give your boxes some extra care.”
Sounds good that they would choose to double check my boxes, but what about the other customers? Was this practice going to continue? The next paragraph made me wonder…
“While our meat is packaged and sealed, everything should be fine to consume unless the meat has been leaking. We ask all customers to always watch their produce regardless, since it does come straight from the Earth. If you ever have meat leaking, please provide a photo because this is crucial feedback for our growth.”
Emphasis added by me–because this is the part that concerns me. As someone who took microbiology courses under a food inspector–and as a human who generally cares about food safety, it sounded like maybe this one employee didn’t quite understand how contamination worked or how dirty meat packaging actually is. In fact, one of the packs of pork chops did leak, but that is beside the point. Meat should not be next to veggies, period.
But, my next boxes would be double checked–there’s no way the company as a whole would think this practice of putting meat next to veggies is okay, right?!They gave me a partial refund in the form of store credits for this order.
I Ordered Again…
I made a big order. I seriously thought that this might help the packing crew–maybe they would put the meats in a separate box…I had such a positive experience with Imperfect Produce in Oregon, I thought, they’ve got to get this right! I hoped they would figure it out. As I waited for my box to arrive, I got the following mixed messages from Imperfect Foods, in email correspondence:
“Most of our proteins are vacuum-sealed which makes their shelf life longer — all information regarding shelf life is either provided in the item description during your shopping window or is printed on the label.”
I’m not sure why this makes the following practices okay:
Shipping meat in a box where it is nowhere near the single ice pack.
Shipping raw meat packages next to vegetables and fruits with no protective barrier.
Another point in the same email said:
“I want you to know that I’ve passed along your experience and concerns to Director of Food/Warehouse Safety and we’ve addressed it with the packing center in your area as the proteins are supposed to be in a separate insulated liner, no different than you packaging your own groceries at the store, as you mentioned.”
And,
“I’m confident it’s been addressed and won’t be an issue that you’ll have to encounter going forward.“
I had less confidence than this Imperfect employee, but still hoped…
My Last Box from Imperfect Foods:
March 24, I received my last order from Imperfect Foods. I won’t be ordering any more. To be fair, making that large order did help, for some of the produce. I received two boxes this time–one with produce by itself, and one with intermingled raw meat, veggies and fruit. Eww.
Again, there was no bag, no separation between meat and produce, and none of the meat was sitting on ice. Everything in this box was wet, from the condensation of thawing raw meat. Yummy, right? Don’t you just want to pick up that pear and eat it?
The Next Emails I Got Didn’t Seem as Apologetic…
In fact, I was treated as if I was the issue–complaining about something that isn’t really a problem. Here’s one quote from an email from a Supervisor at Imperfect Foods:
“Imperfect Foods isn’t taking this seriously? We ship to innumerable households and we find few to have issues such as yours.”
and
“If you are seeking reasonable additional store credits related to your March 24, 2020 order, please indicate which items you would like credited and I will work with you with the understanding that this will be the last time we can offer you credits related to this issue. “
Not, “rest assured, we will be fixing this issue!” Or “Wow, this isn’t acceptable at all, and of course we will provide a refund!” Or “I’m so sorry this has happened to you three times.”
In fact, it doesn’t sound like Imperfect Foods will be changing these policies at all. Once again, an Imperfect employee justified packaging raw meats next to raw produce:
“Factory vacuum sealed meats, hot dogs from your grocery store, as an example, are packaged in a similar manner to the product we ship. These are not the same as grocery apportioned meats wrapped by the store butcher. Two of the chief components to factory vacuum sealing is that the packaging is of a heavier grade, meaning that it is more durable, and it is heat sealed and designed not to leak.”
In other words, they think of their raw chicken, pork chops, ground beef and ground turkey in the same manner they think of hot dogs, which are pre-cooked. And, because the type of packaging is less likely to leak, they consider it safe enough to package next to produce.
Why Raw Meat Packaging Shouldn’t Touch Fresh Produce
First of all, let’s talk about the meat I received. The vacuum sealed pork chops that were in packaging “designed not to leak” did in fact leak red juice all over my white counter when I set them on it. I also noticed, as I defrosted some of the raw ground beef from my freezer, that little bits of raw meat floated in the chilled water.
Bits of raw beef on the outside of packaging that Imperfect Foods packed right next to pears.
It’s only a little bit, but it only takes a tiny bit to contaminate food. We used to package chicken ourselves on our farm. We saw how dirty the whole process is! The person handling the raw meat touches the packaging. There is no way around getting raw meat “juices” and bacteria on the outside of the package. We washed off our packaging, but I still wouldn’t consider it sterile enough to place next to the apples my kids eat for snacks! Eventually, we ended up sending our meats to USDA butchering and packing facilities so that we could sell it at farmer’s markets. Even at these facilities, raw meat touches the outside of the packages. It just happens. Keep this in mind:
“In a report published in 2010 (FSAI), a reported 13.2% of chicken packaging was contaminated with Campylobacter.”Source: Safefood.edu
Another study, performed more recently, in 2018, found more evidence of bacteria on meat packaging:
“Overall, meat juice was detected on 61% of poultry package surfaces, 34% of shoppers’ hands, 41% of grocery bags, 60% of kitchen surfaces, and 51% of food item surfaces.”
This is why there are strict rules in place for restaurants and people who work in food service. I copied the following images from a worksheet that was created by the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. The worksheet can be found here.
The worksheet recommends storing raw meats in a separate fridge from ready-to-eat food. I think pears would be in that category, don’t you? Also, there is a top-to-bottom order, with meats always on the bottom.
The Company Hello Fresh follows this rule and places the two packs of meat on the bottom of the box, right on top of an ice pack, and then there is a cardboard barrier. Then, all of the other ingredients are in a paper bag, many sealed in plastic as well, and on top of that cardboard barrier.
The Imperfect Foods boxes I received were layered oddly, with veggies, meat and fruit mixed up all over the box. They didn’t admit to packing it this way, but implied that it probably happened in shipping:
“Please keep in mind that after your box is packed, your box is transported from the pack center to the carrier, who delivers it to you. Your box is never intentionally jostled, but if you have ever watched a commercial carrier, you understand that boxes are not subjected to normal movement when in transit. We do not use dividers or additional cardboard or paper, as that would add to the carbon footprint.”
I just wonder why Hello Fresh, Thrive Market and Azure Standard boxes are not in an equal amount of disarray when they arrive?
Here’s another picture from the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation:
The raw turkey in this picture is above ready-to-eat food. It might be in vacuum sealed packaging, or in a rimmed dish to prevent it from leaking on foods below–but it is still enough to get a restaurant written up by a health inspector.
The CDC has the same guidelines for food safety in a home kitchen:
“Store raw meat on the bottom shelf away from fresh produce and ready-to-eat food.”
“Separate raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs from other foods in your grocery shopping cart, grocery bags, and refrigerator.”
The CDC also mentions guidelines for grocery shopping and keeping raw meats separate from other foods here:
In fact, if you do a Google search for “separate raw meat” and “FDA,” or “CDC,” you will find a plethora of information. I could keep quoting!
I did’t see any disclaimers from either the FDA or CDC, saying “unless the meat is in vacuum sealed packages.”
Why Meat Should Be Shipped On Ice
I think we all know that meat should be refrigerated. Even if the meat is originally frozen when shipped, it should be defrosted properly, on ice. Imperfect Foods told me that indeed, the meat does leave their warehouse frozen. Let’s look at the timeline of my last box:
It left the FedEx facility at 6:31 PM on March 23, 2020 and arrived at my home at 10:27 AM on March 24, completely defrosted. If the meat left the Imperfect warehouse frozen, as two employees assured me, then the meat wasn’t kept cold enough in the box and defrosted too quickly. If kept at refrigerated temperatures, raw, ground meats should take around 24 hours to defrost. Bigger cuts of meat should take between 24 and 48 hours to defrost. (source) This meat was traveling for 14 hours and was totally defrosted.
The CDC has an article called Tips for Meal Kit and Food Delivery Safety. In that article, they mention the importance of separating raw meat from other foods, as well as this quote:
“Perishable food should arrive frozen, partially frozen with ice crystals still visible, or at least as cold as it would be in a refrigerator.”
My meats from Imperfect Foods did not come partially frozen. It wasn’t as cold as it would be in a refrigerator.
In fact, most of the meat I received from Imperfect Foods was nowhere near the ice pack. Also, note that Hello Fresh sends the same size ice gel pack for two packages of meat (4 chicken breasts, for example) as Imperfect Foods sent with several packages of meat.
Since my meats came completely defrosted, I think it’s important to remember safe thawing guidelines by the FDA:
“Because bacteria can multiply so rapidly in unrefrigerated food, it’s simply unsafe to let food thaw at room temperature. If left unrefrigerated, some organisms can create toxins that will survive the cooking process even if the food is cooked to temperatures that kill the bacteria themselves. There are three ways to thaw safely: in the refrigerator, in cold water, and in the microwave. If you thaw food in cold water, change the water every half hour to make sure it stays cold. Foods thawed in the microwave must be cooked immediately after thawing.”
The meat wasn’t sitting on ice, so it wasn’t thawing in any method equivalent to those listed by the FDA.
Forgetting Their Mission Statement, And Their Customer?
According to their website, Imperfect Food’s Mission statement is:
“Eliminate food waste and build a better food system for everyone.
If food can be saved, we will save it. With every bite into a misshapen apple, short piece of pasta, or oversized egg we can shape our world for the better. We’re hungry for change and eager to reduce waste on the farm, at the store, and in the home.
We are Imperfect Foods. We’re proud to deliver groceries on a mission.”
But sadly, food is wasted when it hasn’t been handled properly and cannot be safely consumed. I’ve thrown away meat, vegetables and fruit from Imperfect Foods because I didn’t think it was safe to eat.
The FDA says that food waste occurs both in the food industry and by consumers.
“…food waste by consumers may often result from fears about food safety caused by misunderstanding of what food product dating actually means, along with uncertainty about storage of perishable foods.“
Possibly, the consumers are uncertain about how safely the perishable foods that were shipped to them were stored.
The Imperfect Foods supervisor shared a different mission statement:
“We hope you understand that our mission is to create a small environmental footprint by utilizing a minimal amount of materials, while bringing safe foods to America’s table!”
I think it’s really important that company employees are aware of and upholding their business’ main goal. What is Imperfect Foods’ number one goal? Is it to:
“Eliminate food waste and build a better system for everyone.” OR
“Create a small environmental footprint by utilizing a minimal amount of materials, while bringing safe foods to America’s table!”?
I’m confused now, because I am not sure they’re succeeding in the first mission statement by claiming the second. And, if “minimal amount of materials” comes before “safe foods” in their priorities, then there’s a problem.
Maybe It’s Better In Other Areas?
Perhaps the issues I have faced are only issues in my area. Maybe west-coasters are still receiving the great quality, safely packed boxes like I got in Oregon. I hope so!! I really do hope that this is a local issue that can be solved.
I was thinking, this may be simply one of the glitches that come along with scaling a business. Imperfect Foods expanded to the east coast in 2018, I think. Fairly recently. Obviously, the people in charge can’t be everywhere–so they’ve got to hire employees to take charge in their distant locations. I hope this is just one of the kinks that comes with expansion, and that they’ll work this out and make necessary changes.
I Quit Today
I replied to the email offering me store credits, and instead, asked for a refund for the box that contained meat and produce. I didn’t ask for a refund for the other box that only contained produce. I mentioned that I don’t think Imperfect Foods is a good fit for my family, because I am concerned about the safety of the food. I didn’t get a response yet, but I saw online that they put my account “On Hold.”
What About Ordering Produce & Not the Meat?
At first, I considered ordering produce and avoiding the more-risky proteins. I’m concerned about the company’s overall views of food safety. If they are repeatedly putting raw meat in with my vegetables and don’t see a problem with it, how can I trust them to handle food safely? Meat and veggies were layered in my box like a lasagna. I wouldn’t want an employee to touch someone else’s raw meat and then pack my box with lettuce and apples and send it to me. There’s no way to know. And, since they don’t seem to believe that meat packaging is dirty, I can’t trust that this kind of carelessness or contamination won’t happen.
I Asked About This on Social Media
Since the Imperfect Foods supervisor said that they have few people who have issues such as mine, I started to wonder if I’m the only one who thinks this is wrong. I assumed I had at least one friend who would agree with me–she’s got a Master’s in Biology and has been posting “Germaphobe” tips on Facebook because of the Coronavirus. I thought for sure, she’d be in my boat here! I wondered, though, would there be others? I will share some screenshots (with identities blacked out to protect my friends and Facebook followers):
I was glad to know I wasn’t alone, and knew I couldn’t just let this issue go, for the sake of others.
My Purpose in Sharing This
Like I mentioned above, I really enjoyed Imperfect Produce when we lived in Oregon. I was a dedicated customer and spent quite a bit of money with them. I’m super sad–not just disappointed–sad that they don’t seem to get that this is an issue. I’m sad about how they’re handling me, a loyal customer. I tried emailing multiple times, asking them to alter their practices, and got some disappointing responses (as I shared above). Their emails didn’t speak of plans to change, or that they recognized that my concerns were valid. So, I share this to:
Bring about change. I really hope that they see the comments of other people and know that I’m not the only one upset by this. I do hope that they read this and change their practices. They have the potential to be a great business & serve a lot of people! I really want them to do it safely.
Keep people from getting sick. There is already too much sickness going on in our world today!!! Many people are turning to food delivery services like Imperfect in order to get groceries, safely, into their homes. But–the way my food was packaged was not safe. The last thing we need right now is to have people getting food borne illnesses and Coronavirus! Yikes.
Update, A Response From Imperfect Foods 3/31/2020
Imperfect Foods emailed me back today. They are refunding the money I spent on the box full of meat plus produce, but they are refusing to serve me any longer. First, the email from the supervisor said:
“I am so sorry that your meats, in spite of being in the keep cold insulated full wrap bag did not perform to your standards.“
But to clarify, the meat was not in a bag–there was no bag present in any of my orders. What they probably meant was that there was insulation around the perimeter of the inside of the box (in this specific order–not in all of my orders).
“Did not perform to your standards,” again, sounds as though I am the one with unattainable standards and the problem here. There is no actual apology for their company doing anything wrong here–just an apology that their company doesn’t meet my standards. So odd!
“We are no longer able to solve your complaints using a financial approach. I’ve noticed you’ve contacted us with a number of similar complaints recently, and it’s evident that we’re not currently in a place to meet the standards you require.”
Again, what a strange response when food safety is the matter at hand! Yes, I do require my food to be packaged and shipped safely. Yes, I do want meat to be kept at cold temperatures and to be separated from fresh, ready-to-eat foods. Is that really unreasonable?
“Based on the patterns observed in your recent account history, it does not look like we are a good service for you. Since it is clear that we currently do not have a feasible solution for you that aligns with our business model, I have canceled your subscription with us.”
Keeping raw meat on ice and away from fresh produce does not align with their business model? Yikes! That’s all I was asking for. I’m okay with my subscription being cancelled, if they can’t find a feasible solution to keep food safe. What a big bummer!
They ended the email with:
“I’m sorry that we couldn’t come to a solution that worked for both of us and we’ve truly appreciated your support in helping us fighting food waste.”
I am really baffled by this, truly! They’re a food delivery company and food can make people sick if mishandled. These aren’t minor complaints, and I’m not being ultra picky about something little. This is a big deal.
The last part really gets me, “helping us fight food waste,” because I’m thinking about the pounds of raw meat and produce I have thrown into the garbage after receiving their deliveries, because it didn’t seem safe enough to eat.
Again, I’m sad to lose this service. I’m sad that they’ve ended my customer relationship with them on such a bitter note.
What Do You Think About This?
I would love to hear your thoughts! Would you be okay with raw meats arriving in a package next to carrots, apples, celery and lettuce? Share your thoughts below.
