Updated on 01/09/2024 to reflect changes in the pricing of the boxes and to include a £1.99 delivery cost (originally free)
Please note prices have changed since I placed my first order, 2024 prices are correct as per the images, but subject to change.
ODDBOX is a rescued vegetable and fruit delivery service that rescues fresh, seasonal surplus fruit & veg at risk of becoming food waste. Read my review of their service and find out how you can help save food from waste and support small independent farms.
ODDBOX is a rescued vegetable and fruit delivery service which rescues fresh, seasonal surplus fruit & veg which are at risk of becoming food waste. The reason for this? They're simply seen as 'too oddly' shaped, 'too oddly' sized, having cosmetic defects, or even excessive amounts of products than needed.
I wanted to give this a try as I like the idea of helping save food from waste, as well as helping out small independent farms financially, which I think is incredibly important, as so many farms have to close as they can't be competitive with the 'big boys'
I signed up for a £17.49 large vegetable box and had a £10 off my first order voucher, so I actually paid £7.49 (More on that in a minute). The box was delivered sometime between when I went to work at 6 pm and when I got home at 11 pm; they tend to deliver between 7 pm and 7 am. The box was in good condition and well-packed.
So what did I get in my OddBox?
In the box was a range of more unusual and interesting-looking veggies! I received:
2x Packs of Rainbow Chard
Assorted coloured carrots
10x Red onions
Bag of purple radish - probably around 600g worth
Head of celery
5x large potatoes
2x Squash
Cauliflower
Living lettuce (Still has the roots and soil attached still will stay fresh longer in the fridge)
All the veg was lovely and fresh and in decent condition. I was concerned that I would get a load of tired, lower-standard products, but I'm pleased to say my concerns were totally unfounded.
I like the more unusual selection of products supplied, there is something quite fun about having vegetables that are outside your comfort zone, and you need to Google to find recipes for. I'm certainly looking forward to trying the chard, as that's not something I've had before; plus have found a recipe for roasted radish, which looks lush!
Is it good value to buy an OddBox?
So value for money, it is more expensive than popping to the supermarket for vegetables. That's to be expected; after all, it's straight from the farm, has to be delivered, and everybody needs to be able to make some profit. I reckon in the supermarket, it's probably around £12 - £14 worth, undelivered, so a little more money, but I would be happy to pay the extra, knowing the sustainability benefits of the service, plus have the benefit of it being delivered to my door for just £1.99. I'm very happy with my box, and I will be ordering a fruit box for next week to see what I get! Pricing starts at £11.49 for an extra small box, and the biggest size box they offer is £23.99.
If you use this referral link, you can grab £10 off your first order and so could receive an OddBox. You can get £10 off your first box, priced £14 or more.
I thought I would try it, but the contents of my box were poor quality and no different to the vegetables that I could buy from the supermarket. Some were even packaged in plastic. This is surely some sort of scam, and not at all as advertised on the tv.
I costed out a large fruit and veg box and found it was 50p more than purchasing in a supermarket and was very impressed with the quality. Maybe the larger boxes offer better value for money?
Andy
It’s somewhat ironic that Oddbox
operates out of a Tesco
depot at Cross&Wells and repackages store waste (out of date) vegetables instead of them going to landfill....then charges more money for this than they originally cost at Tesco’s when they were fresh. It’s all worthy of course but it’s a bit dishonest and disingenuous to claim it’s the wonky stuff that farmers don’t sell.