GrainsWest summer 2016

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The Food Issue 2016 GrainsWest 32
BY TAMARA LEIGH • PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF SPUD AND THE ORGANIC BOX
ONLINE SHOPPING FUELS FOOD-DELIVERY REVIVAL
RISTA EWERT WAS FIRST
inspired to try a grocery delivery
service when her first child was
born. “The idea of going to the grocery
store with a baby was not appealing to
me,” she said. “So I started ordering from
”
Sustainable Produce Urban Delivery
(SPUD) started delivering groceries in
Vancouver in 1997, before expanding to
Calgary in 2002 and Edmonton in 2014.
Currently, it operates in those three cities,
as well as Victoria, Los Angeles and San
Francisco. An early entrant into the online
grocery market, SPUD has gradually
expanded from delivering weekly
produce boxes to offering a selection of
local produce and grocery items.
Ewert started ordering from
while living in Vancouver, and continued
to use the service when she relocated
with her family to Edmonton. She enjoys
the convenience, and buying online
helps her stick to her grocery budget by
reducing distractions and impulse buys.
In her eight years as a customer, she has
developed confidence in the company’s
ability to select quality produce as well.
“I can trust SPUD. If I get something
and I’m not satisfied, I can call or email
them and they’ll refund me,” Ewert said.
“One of the great things about SPUD
is they tell you about the producers
they are buying from. It really helps us
choose wisely and be more conscious
about our food.”
Ewert’s story is not unique. She is
part of a growing number of Canadians
who are turning to the Internet for their
food needs, whether it is basic grocery
supplies, meal kits that can be cooked
fresh, or prepared meals from restaurants
and retailers.
It’s a market that is segmented based
on personal values as much as it is on the
value of the food itself.
For SPUD, increasing consumer
awareness and demand for local and
sustainably produced products is at the
heart of the company, and continues
to fuel its growth. It works with local
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