When we first learned about financial independence, we started to analyze our spending. One of the first things that we realized was that we spent way too much on groceries.
I eat gluten-free and have a variety of weird food allergies. We like to eat healthy, fresh foods, which also tend to cost a bit more. I would assume that we’d spend a little bit more on groceries than the average.
Through some research, we realized that we spent more money on food than the USDA’s guidance for a (liberal spending) family of four.
We have taken steps to improve. We’ve focused on not wasting food, meal planning based on what we already have, and buying in bulk. We have reduced our food spending quite a bit, but we felt like it was still high.
I wanted to save more money on groceries. I didn’t feel like we were getting the appropriate value for the money we were spending.
Someone mentioned that they save money by using a CSA (community supported agriculture). What this means is that you buy a share in a farm and then you get a big box of produce each week for the summer and fall.
While I was doing research into this, I stumbled across ugly produce delivery services. I found these services appealing for two reasons. First, these services ship the produce directly to your house, compared to a CSA that typically requires you to pick it up from a central location. The ugly veggie services also provide the option of customizing the size of the box. CSA shares provide a lot of food, and I wasn’t sure that we could use it all.
There are two options for ugly produce where we live: Misfits Market and Imperfect Foods. We decided to try them both, alternating weeks between the two. One week we’ll get a Misfits Market box. The next week we’ll receive an Imperfect Foods Box.
Now that we’ve subscribed to these services for 3-4 months, it’s time to choose which service is better and write a review of both.
What is Ugly Produce Delivery?
In the united states, approximately 40% of our food is wasted. It isn’t only consumers who are wasting food. Food is wasted for a variety of reasons and at different points along the supply chain. Farms, distributors, stores, and consumers are all guilty of too much food waste.
For the purposes of this post, let’s focus on the beginning of the supply chain – farms. Farms waste food for a variety of reasons:
- Hedging against Weather and Disease – Farms will often over-plant because they worry about bad weather or other potential harm to their crops. Because of this, they might have a surplus that there is not a demand for.
- Buying Standards – As consumers in the United States, we have unrealistic cosmetic requirements for our produce. In a grocery store, we are likely to buy perfectly looking vegetables. This is problematic because this leads to edible but “ugly” crops being left in the fields.
- Market Conditions – Sometimes the crop’s price at the time does not warrant the cost of labor or transportation to bring it to market.
- Order Changes – Sometimes a company will make a large order and later cancel their order. This leaves farms scrambling to figure out if they can sell the product.
The National Resource Defence Council makes a number of recommendations to help solve this problem. One of their main recommendations is to “expand secondary markets for items that do not meet the highest cosmetic standards.”
This is precisely what companies like Misfits Market and Imperfect Foods are doing. They are the secondary markets. They are buying the produce from farms when there is a surplus or when the produce doesn’t meet cosmetic requirements.
Instead of this produce going to waste, it gets sold at a discount to companies like Misfits Market and Imperfect Foods. These companies then ship the produce from their warehouse to customers.
What are the Benefits of using a Secondary Market?
There are many benefits to buying your produce through a company like Misfits Market or Imperfect Foods.
- Cost Savings: Produce through these services are less expensive. When I first started using these services, I compared prices with my regular grocery store. The prices are typically 30-50% less, depending on the product.
- Time Savings: These companies deliver the produce right to your door. This cuts down on the need for going grocery shopping
- Healthy Eating: Now that we use these services we eat more fresh fruits and vegetables than we used to. We eat a ton of salad for lunch, have vegetables as a side to our dinners, and eat the fruit for snacks.
- More inventive meals: Since we now plan our meals around the produce that arrives in our box, we’ve been more creative with our meals. We’ve made many recipes I would have never even considered. These new recipes include spaghetti squash boats, cabbage and sausage skillet, and even a curtido (pickled cabbage to put on tacos).
- Good for the environment: Buying produce from these services helps to reduce food waste. These companies have also done due diligence to ensure that food pantries are not receiving fewer donations.
What are the Drawbacks?
If you use one of these services, there are certain drawbacks. You are no longer stopping at the grocery store to get what you want or need.
- Limited choices: Depending on which service you use, you either don’t get to choose your items or you only get to choose from what is currently available. There are occasions when we get food that we don’t want or can’t use. For example, I am allergic to fresh fennel. At one point, we received some in our box, and we weren’t able to use it. There are also occasions where we got such a wide variety that we couldn’t figure out recipes to put them all together before they go bad.
- Limited Delivery Frequency: Sometimes these products are shipped by FedEx, so they can arrive on any delivery day that you choose. Other times, a company might only deliver to your area once/week.
- Product Quality is Sometimes Lower: There are occasions where I will receive a product that needs to be eaten within a couple of days. On rare occasions, some products will get smashed in transit.
How do Misfits Market and Imperfect Foods Compare?
| Category | Misfits Market | Imperfect Foods |
|---|---|---|
| Contents | An assortment of fruits and vegetables. | You have the option to choose a box that includes: -Fruits and Vegetables -Vegetables Only -Fruits Only -Green (Organic) |
| Order Customization | No customization | Yes. A few days before each delivery, you have the opportunity to customize. You can choose to add and eliminate items. There are also optional add-on items like cheese, dry goods, eggs, etc. |
| Organic Produce | Yes, all the produce is organic. | Some produce is organic. Even if you don’t choose an all organic box, you have the opportunity to add organic items when you customize. |
| Price | Two sizes: 10-13 lbs for $22 18-22 lbs for $35 | 8 options: Conventional (non-organic): Small (7-9 lbs) for ~$11 Medium (11-13 lbs) for ~$14 Large (17-19 lbs) for ~$20 XL (23-25 lbs) for ~$25 Organic: Small (7-9 lbs) for ~$15 Medium (11-13 lbs) for ~$22 Large (17-19 lbs) for ~$33 |
| Delivery Schedule | You specify your delivery day - ships via FedEx. | Imperfect tells you what day/time that they deliver to your area. |
| Delivery Fee | $4.50 | $4.99-$5.99 |
| Locations | Delivers to all addresses in a number of states, mostly in the northeast, mid-west, and mid-Atlantic | Most major metropolitan areas: west coast, east coast, mid-west, and Texas |
| Referral Program | Yes. Your friend gets 25% off their first box, and you get 25% off your next box. (Misfits sometimes runs special promotions up to 50% off) | Yes. Your friend gets $10 off their first box, and you get $10 off your next box. |
About Imperfect Foods
Imperfect Foods was started in 2015. They focus on metropolitan areas. They currently deliver to 25 metropolitan areas in the United States.
They differentiate themselves by allowing customers to customize their boxes. You can choose from 4 different size boxes and organic or conventional. They will add a set of items to your box. During a customization window, you can swap things out and add eggs, dairy, or other pantry items if you’d like.
Imperfect Foods has their own delivery drivers. Because of this delivery options are limited. For example, they only deliver to my area on Tuesday afternoons.
About Misfits Market
Misfits Market was started in 2018. They are based in Philadelphia and New Jersey.
You choose from two sized boxes (small or large). They fill your box with a variety of items they currently have (all organic). It gets delivered to your doorstep by FedEx.
Misfits Market differentiates themselves by not only focusing on urban, highly populated areas. They have a list of states where they deliver, and they can deliver to any address within the state.
How are they similar?
Misfits Market and Imperfect Foods have so many similarities.
- Mission: Both companies have a mission to reduce food waste.
- Sourcing: They both source the produce that would not sell in stores for a variety of reasons, whether it be surplus or cosmetic requirements.
- Delivery: Both companies deliver the box right to your doorstep.
- Delivery Fee: They both charge a nominal delivery fee.
- Referrals: They both offer a referral program. You will get a discount on your next order if a friend signs up.
How are they different?
Although these companies are seeking to solve the same problem, they are also different in a few ways.
- Organic vs. Conventional: Misfits Market offers 100% organic produce. Imperfect Foods offers both organic and conventional produce.
- Selection: Misfits Market only includes produce. Imperfect Foods also offers pantry items, dairy, eggs, and more.
- Customization: Misfits Market does not offer any customization. Imperfect Foods allows you to customize your order based on their available selection.
- Price per Unit: Misfits Market’s cost is based on the weight of the entire box. With Imperfect Foods, you see the cost of each item. This allows you to compare it to the prices in your local grocery store.
- Coverage: Misfits Market delivers to all zip codes in the states it covers. Imperfect Foods focuses on highly populated metropolitan areas.
- Delivery Schedule: Misfits Market uses FedEx for shipping, so you get to choose your delivery day. Since Imperfect Foods has its own delivery services, delivery windows are more limited. For example, they only deliver to my area on Tuesday afternoons.
Best Ugly Produce Service: Misfits Market vs. Imperfect Foods
We’ve been getting both of these boxes for a few months. Now is the time to decide which one we prefer!
Ultimately, your decisions will be based on what you value most (or where you live).
For me, I’ve realized that the things I value most are cost and customization.
I don’t think I need to eat all organic produce, so I don’t need to pay the premium.
I also love the ability to customize. I eat a lot more vegetables than fruit. If I get a Misfits Market box with more fruit, some of it usually goes bad before I eat it.
Sometimes, I get products that I don’t know how to cook. I usually can figure out what to do with it, but sometimes I don’t figure it out before they go bad.
For us, the delivery day is not a deal-breaker for us. It forces us to plan our meals slightly differently. I usually end up ordering items that will last longer to use over the weekend.
For these reasons, Imperfect Foods is our clear winner!
No customization would be a hard sell for us. But I get why they do it.
And ohhhh those USDA averages seemed so impossibly low when I first looked at them 😬
Hey!
Yes, customization is key. That’s honestly the biggest reason why I prefer Imperfect. The USDA averages, I think are really low, or we’re just big spenders… haha
We love the customization option with imperfect produce. They carry a few items that we legitimately have a hard time finding in stores so that has been a huge bonus.
We do wish the food was just a bit uglier at times though. 😂
Hi Derek,
That’s great! I also love the customization. I really enjoy the dried fruits that they sometimes have too.
I’m glad you are enjoying it!
Jessica
These both sound great. Looking at your photos of the veg my first reaction was… But there isn’t anything wrong with any of those !?!!. I know that’s kind of the point, but I mean, really, this counts as ugly veg? Wow.
At most I would say they are not all identically sized (plums, mushrooms).
I don’t live in the US, and I grew up with my grandparents growing most of their own veg, so maybe my expectations are set differently, which in itself is interesting from a social studies point of view !.
Hi Maria,
I know! It’s so crazy. Sometimes, they are a bit small or a little misshapen, but I actually wish they were a little uglier. 🙂
Best,
Jessica
On their website it looked like Imperfect has a $30 minimum order? Is that per week?
Hey Laura,
Apparently, this is true for certain areas of the country, where they don’t do their own delivery. I think this is true.
I know people who choose to do every other week, which is another option.
Best,
Jessica
This needs some updating! Misfits Market DOES allow you to customize your box! They also have add ons of pantry items like coffee, grains and seasonings etc.
I just got my box of items that I chose. There isn’t one thing in my box that will go unused! It comes reliably on the day that we chose and its packed very well. I haven’t been disappointed yet.
Hi there,
Thanks for letting me know this. When I stopped using them several months ago, they did not allow customization.
I will take a look at it, so I can update the post.
Thanks,
Jessica
I am trying imperfect foods for the first time and they didn’t deliver the day they said, gave me an updated date in which the food didn’t arrive THEN gave me a different day. Still don’t have it and being a Sunday, my box is sitting at FedEx. Haven’t gotten to try their products yet but since they haven’t been able to provide a delivery yet, I have cancelled. Looking forward to trying Misfits at least for better service and accurate delivery date.
Hi Mindy,
This is unfortunate. If Misfits is in our area, you could definitely try it. I’ve never had an issue with my delivery date, but it also doesn’t get shipped via fedex. They are drivers here.
Best of luck,
Jessica
Mindy –
Same experience here, but my first box just arrived, six days late. The ice packs were completely thawed and room temperature. I’ve tried and tried over the last week to reach out to Imperfect and I get auto replies. I’m so disappointed in all of it – got a humongous box that was about 1/4 full so all the produce just got banged around in the big nearly empty box during its 8 days in transit. Not being able to reach them is also so disappointing. I just cancelled my subscription after opening my box. Guess I’ll try Misfits next.
I’m so sorry to hear this. I wonder if there’s a difference between places where they have delivery drivers and places where it’s shipped. For me, mine always comes and the ice pack is still completely frozen, and I wonder why they even needed to have it in there in the first place.
I’m surprised that you couldn’t reach them. I think they are just starting to experiment with shipping to locations that are further out rather than having their own delivery drivers. I hope that they can get that fixed soon.
I’ve enjoyed my subscription so far. I’m sorry you didn’t have the same experience. If Misfits is better for you, I’d love to hear about it.
I’ve had similar shipping mishaps and inability to reach Imperfect.
My first box was three days late (they didn’t ship in time) and my second one day late (FedEx issues). Their packing seems to be a hit careless. All my food was just thrown in a box and shipped via FedEx (the worst shipping company ever know to man) so some of the produce came extra damaged thanks to how FedEx staff treat boxes. For example I had one zucchini that was broken into about 7 pieces and both sets of celery look like they survived a bomb on the way to me. Not how I wanted my produce to be treated but all still mostly edible though!
I’ve contacted Imperfect twice and NEVER heard back other than an automated email saying sorry for the delay here’s a delivery credit. I really have concerns about them using FedEx in my area.
I love the produce and concept and not having to go to the store so much that I’ll keep using them for now. I really hope it’s just growing pains and using crappy logistics carriers! Fingers crossed for my next delivery!
Thanks for sharing Talaena. I agree I hope it’s growing pains.
I’m glad they are giving you delivery credit. Are they giving you $ into your account toward your next box too?
I bet it’ll get better over time.
I just got my first order from Misfits today and I was disappointed to see how small everything was and how little was in the box. I canceled my subscription immediately.
Just for giggles I priced every single item at my local Kroger and it came out to be cheaper at the store (I priced all organics). That wasn’t what I expected at all.
Hey! This is very interesting.
When I first started doing Misfits, I priced everything to non-organic – and it definitely saved me money, but maybe your local grocery store is cheaper than mine!
However, I definitely thought that Imperfect was a better value, since I don’t feel like I need to eat all organic, and I could customize my box.
Thanks for the comment,
Jessica
Hi my husband and I would like to try the imperfect foods. How can we cancell if we don’t like it? If we do like it(we plan on moving), can we cancell and when we get situated sign up again?
Thanks you, Lisa
Hi Lisa,
Yes absolutely! They set you up with an online account and you can cancel at any time. You can also skip orders if you are going to be out of town or anything. It’s pretty flexible.
Good luck and enjoy!
Jessica
I received my first Imperfect in Feb 2020 I live in the Lou, KY area it came in 2 boxes both had frozen ice packs I have 1 carrot that had the tip broken off. Everything was cold fresh and in great shape. The pears we received were the best we have ever had. I am set to get my 2nd delivery the end of this week. I love the option to customize and the meats I have added on are delicious also. I have not tried misfits I would be willing to but so far so good with imperfect.
Hi Kim,
Thanks for sharing! We started getting some of the meat and pantry items through there as well, and everything’s been great. It really helps us cut down on our grocery bill!
I’m so glad it’s working for you!
Jessica
I done both services 6 months each. I found misfit doesnt have customization for picking products and I got 8 onions full size onions in 2 of my box orders before. But I always got my delivery and my items weren’t damaged.
Inperfect love picking what I want but out of 8 boxes I had 2 with veggies smashed and broke completely unusable. 2 boxes go missing delivered to wrong address had to contact fedex and hunt down my boxes (no refund or credit). 1 box completley canceled because it was damaged by delivery service. I but in claims to FedEx each time and nothing gotten better.
The company always refunds me for missing boxes. If damage product they refund just the cost of the damage item itself not the whole box cost and have to send a picture. So they either have issue with FedEx delivery or they do not package well enough for shipping.
Strongly considering switching back to misfit market.
Thanks for the blog. I have just cancelled my Imperfect Foods subscription. The boxes are poorly packed, causing too many damaged items: tomatoes, apples, oranges, onions. Lemons and avocados the size of my thumb arrived at full price. Fun to look at, but not to pay money for. Love the idea, but Imperfect Foods was far too imperfect in Los Angeles.
I’m sorry to hear this. We rarely have a problem with the produce being significantly smaller than normal. Best,
Jessica