Electrifying Your Five a Day
Recently recognised by the Independent as one of the top vegbox services in the UK, Boxxfresh are an award-winning local ‘pick your own’ on-line vegbox delivery business based on a farm in Titchfield, Hampshire. It was started in 2017 by founders Kelly and Jon Barfoot who were on a mission to reconnect people to where their food comes from and inspire them to cook simple, delicious and healthy meals. Everything comes straight from supplier’s fields directly to customers and is never held for more than 24 hours ensuring Boxxfresh delivers from-the-fields freshness.
The only criticism the Independent levelled at Boxxfresh was that they were constrained to delivery within their Hampshire catchment. This was remedied in July when the Boxxfresh service was launched nationwide.
Kelly Barfoot commented: “It took the positive feedback from the Independent to give us the confidence boost we needed.”
Researching a logistics partner that would help them grow without increasing their environmental footprint led to a chance meeting with Zedify; a zero-emissions urban logistics start-up, which had recently launched in the area. The outcome was a successful pilot test throughout August, followed by Boxxfresh starting deliveries to Portsmouth, Winchester and Southampton postcodes from this September, using zero-emissions electric cargo‘e-bikes’ and ‘e-vans’ from the Zedify hub.
Jon Barfoot added: “We're proudly green from the ground up. Customers repeatedly tell us they choose Boxxfresh for our eco-credentials such as our ‘Naked Veg Pledge’, to remove single-use plastics, and they are looking for ways to reduce their own environmental footprint. So, it makes complete sense to take our commitment to sustainability further with urban deliveries made in zero-emissions vehicles.”
Zedify offers a solution to the growing problem of delivering in urban areas by utilising consolidation hubs on the edge of urban areas that act as a gateway for small items coming in and out of the area using an all-electric fleet of cargo bikes, trikes and vans for good value, healthier deliveries.
There’s something quite romantic and nostalgic about a bicycle carrying farm-fresh veggies to customer’s doorsteps. With the e-bike’s cargo capacity of 40 vegboxes on a single route, Boxxfresh expects to save several tonnes of CO2 emissions annually from Portsmouth, Southampton and Winchester’s streets - proving an old fashioned delivery method using modern technology can provide a winning solution for all.