The Produce Box was founded in 2007 in Raleigh, NC.
I always love hearing about local upstarts that sprung from the brain of a mom. Seriously. They always seem to have the best ideas. And the fact that this lot of young moms, who, after being one myself, have to be one of the most exhausted demographics in the country, can nurture these ideas from inception to the actual formation of successful businesses never ceases to amaze me.
We already know and love Parker White’s successful BackPack Beginnings’ story.
Raleigh’s Courtney Tellefsen was a stay-at-home mom to two young toddlers when she started getting frustrated with the lack of local produce available at the grocery store and the very real barriers to attending a farmers’ market with a 2-year-old and 4-year-old in tow. Ironically, the same things have crossed my mind. Unlike my own passing thoughts, this Courtney actually did something about it. She started The Produce Box (TPB) out of her garage to supply neighbors with fresh produce from local farmers. Less than a decade later, TPB now supports more than 40 farmers and 60 artisan food businesses across the state. Their staff has grown to 200 moms and dads delivering food to their neighbors all over North Carolina, including the Triad.
As if this organization was not already easy to support, the icing on the cake (or should I say the skin on the potatoes) is that they like to give back to the communities that they serve.
Enter BPB.
Every Friday, TPB drops off their leftover food to the warehouse and the staff at BPB drives it straight to schools. The Food Pantry Program has seen an immediate impact, especially at Grimsley High School and Hope Academy. The produce provided to the schools has included peppers, kale, tomatoes, cucumbers and corn…just to name a few.
Adding fresh food to BPB’s weekly programs is a huge deal and one that is newly possible through this partnership. We are so thankful for this opportunity and can’t wait to see what new doors it opens for providing healthy options to our students.
Learn more about TPB at their website at www.theproducebox.com. I was quickly distracted from the history page and started exploring the variety of fresh, local produce boxes available at a reasonable price delivered directly to your doorstep. In fact, I may become a member sooner than later.
Written on 3/24/2015 by Blogger Courtney Murphy
