The Produce Box

What's in the box: Boxes hold seasonal fruit and vegetables mostly grown on North Carolina farms, and you can add local meat, dairy, eggs, bread and prepared meals.

The Produce Box is an online farmers market in Raleigh-Durham that delivers North Carolina food to members' doors. It works more like a local grocery service than a fixed box. Members get an assigned delivery day, shop from more than 400 products each weekend and can edit their subscriptions as needed. Produce boxes are one category, sold alongside meat, dairy, eggs, bakery items and prepared meals. Where the food comes from is the main reason to choose it. The company says it works with over 100 North Carolina farmers and food makers. It also says more than 70% of its produce is grown within 150 miles of its warehouse year-round, and local aggregators supply items that don't grow in the state. Meat, dairy and eggs come from small North Carolina family farms, and much of it is pasture-raised, grass-fed or Animal Welfare Approved. Packaging is returnable and low-waste, and local drivers called Neighborhood Ambassadors deliver orders in their own communities. The business is woman-owned and has been running for more than 15 years. It also supplies low-cost produce boxes to Triangle nonprofits that serve food-insecure neighbors. The big limit is where it delivers. Service covers only the Raleigh-Durham area, so most US shoppers cannot use it. Membership costs $25 a year on top of your grocery bill, and the homepage does not list box prices or delivery fees.