Hey everyone! We’re getting a lot more deliveries during this time and that means a lot more packaging waste. But our safety and convenience doesn’t have to come at the cost of the environment!
Here is how you can get fruits and vegetables delivered to you in the Klang Valley, without creating more waste.
These fruit and vegetable deliveries do their best to provide us nutritious food at low environmental impact. I’m sharing businesses that promote either one or a combination of these practices:
- Zero waste / low waste deliveries
- Sustainable farming methods (organic farming, permaculture, small community urban farmers)
- Food rescue (saving perfectly edible food to avoid them being thrown away)
- Social entrepreneurships (Orang Asli farmers, urban farmers)
They have shifted to deliveries 100% during the pandemic, but I hope you will find these great businesses worth supporting on any other day.
Community Eco Market
Community Eco Market was one of my first times ordering an organic vegetable box direct from local, organic farmers. They usually deliver to a Pick-Up-Point, where you get a box filled with vegetables you can then return each time for a new box.
You can also refill your dried goods #zerowaste in your own containers with them from their Pick-Up-Points during normal operations, and are very affordable.
They’ve even managed to do tofu in banana leaves! (*however during this period, sometimes the tofu is in plastic but they are working hard to convince their suppliers)
During the pandemic, they are delivering the vegetables in reused bags and have a wide reach across the Klang Valley. And if you have plenty of clean reusable bags at home, PLEASE consider donating it to them during delivery so that they can reuse it for all other their other orders.
Community Eco Market (CEM) is based on a community-supported agriculture and food production concept involving a group of farmers/food producers, and consumers to support high quality, safe and ecologically-friendly practices in Malaysia.
Cost savings from materials, packaging, storage, and better planning of resources are passed back to consumers by way of discounts off the products’ regular price.
Reach: Across Klang Valley
Awesomeness: Zero waste deliveries, Organic, Supports Small farmers
Order Through: Whatsapp
Order 3 days in advance, delivers once a week depending on area
Green Hero
Green Hero is well known for food rescue in KL and Penang, and have been one of the easiest folks to recommend to most people, whether they’re looking to reduce waste or not! They rescue food surplus from being thrown away directly from businesses, and deliver them to your door. Some of the crowd favourites are baked buns and sushi!
They’re doing vege deliveries during MCO, rescuing vegetables from Cameron Highland farmers (non-organic). Do note that in food rescue, they often take the food directly in ‘as-is condition’ from the businesses i.e. often is already wrapped in plastic.
However, they do not introduce ‘new waste’ into the process by delivering in reused bags, and are working hard on a system to encourage vendors to prevent the original packaging as well.
They have a super simple system that works well – a Whatsapp broadcast group that announces the food they have rescued for the day for you to order.
Join their Whatsapp broadcast groups by reaching out to them, an app is in the works.
Reach: Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya, Bandar Puteri Puchong, TTDI & Bangsar (for vege) and various parts of the Klang Valley for other food rescue
Awesome for: Food rescue
Order Through: Whatsapp (Instagram DM or Facebook message them to get into the Whatsapp broadcast group) which will migrate to the app in the future.
Same-day delivery depending on availability
Everleaf
Everleaf connects customers directly to the farmers – and have their own stringent processes for ensuring the farms they work with are completely pesticide-free.
However, remember to request for a zero waste delivery, as they don’t do this automatically. You can do this in-app by checking the appropriate box or leave a note for them in “Remarks” and the vegetables will arrive unpackaged in a reusable bag (which you can return for reuse).
Reach: Klang Valley
Awesome for: Zero waste deliveries available (but not automatic), Organic, Direct from farmers
Order Through: Everleaf App or Website
Order 3 days in advance, delivers twice a week
https://www.instagram.com/p/BsXVrwknpwR/
Kunyit Grocer
Kunyit Grocer is a dynamic duo providing pesticide-free fruits and vegetables, organic eggs and chicken, honey and freshly baked organic vegan bread from Pantree
They deliver a wholesome bag of organic vegetables twice a week wrapped in brown paper and in a reusable bag. You can request them to exclude the paper too, which is what I usually do.
During “normal” times, you can do pickups in Kota Damansara too.
Reach: Across Klang Valley, based in Kota Damansara
Awesome for: Zero waste deliveries, Organic, Supports Small farmers
Order Through: Whatsapp
Order 3 days in advance, delivers twice a week
Graze Market
Graze Market is a food surplus rescue group, that primarily focuses on rescuing imperfect produce that don’t look aesthetically ideal bu@t are perfectly fine to eat.
Reach: Petaling Jaya, Mont Kiara, Bukit Damansara, Bangsar
Awesome for: Food rescue
Order Through: Google Forms (refer to their Instagram for order details) and Whatsapp for clarification
Orders are first come first served based on delivery slot availability, delivers 4 times a week
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-WWUvOJq0H/
Grub Cycle
Grub Cycle is a food rescue app that offers discounted prices on food that are often close to it’s “Best Before Date” but still good to eat.
During MCO, they have vegetable deliveries available as well to connect the logistical gaps between farmers and customers during this time. They’re unpackaged and come in a reusable bag that can be returned on your next order
Reach: Klang Valley
Awesome for: Food rescue
Order Through: GrubCycle App
Orders are first come first served based on availability, delivers daily on weekdays
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-iyE7LpfN5/
The Hive Bulk Foods
The Hive Bulk Foods is a social enterprise and a pioneer in zero waste stores in Malaysia.
They’re a convenient one-stop shop for getting #zerowaste dried food refills into our own containers but if you don’t want to leave the house, you can get it delivered during the MCO.
This is great for all your dried ingredients like grains, beans, pasta, condiments, etc.
They use reused containers, cardboard boxes and reused paper to deliver your food to you.
As for vegetables, they organise a weekly Farmers Basket from small organic farms in Semenyih and Orang Asli farmers, however currently it is at capacity with their existing customers and will only open for new customers at a later date.
Reach: Nationwide
Awesome for: Zero waste deliveries, organic dried goods options
Order Through: Website
Order anytime, delivers on weekdays
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-gnJLnJ_3c/
Stay safe, and keep our nutrition levels high and sustainable throughout the pandemic and beyond!
And a little bonus for snacks:
Origin Bulk Store
Origin Bulk Store is an awesomely convenient option for all your healthy snacking needs, you can get nuts, dried fruit, and asian groceries (i.e. dates, dried scallops etc.) sent to you #zerowaste . They usually send in returnable glass jars (which gives you a discount on your next order) and 100% post consumer cardboard boxes and paper.
This is a really great option to convert all our snacking into something healthier – my favourite is their goji berries!
During MCO, they are also offering a 5% discount to customers and contributing 5% of your order value to the Kechara Soup Kitchen. You can also alternatively request an alternative aluminium brown paper packaging, if you prefer.
I usually request to pack my order in clean, reused post-consumer containers, so I can help lighten their demand of returnable glass jars during this time and to avoid new packaging of brown paper.
Reach: Nationwide
Awesome for: Zero waste deliveries
Order Through: Website
Order anytime, delivers in one day on weekdays
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-ThlfbpFtm/
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