Frequently Asked Questions About Local Food Delivery in North Carolina

The Produce Box is a local food delivery service based at the NC State Farmers Market in Raleigh, NC. We partner with more than 100 North Carolina farms and food makers to bring you fresh, seasonal produce, pasture-raised meat, farm-fresh dairy, eggs, bread, honey, frozen meals, and more, delivered straight to your door.

Every week, our menu rotates based on what’s in season and what our artisan producers are making. You shop from that menu, customize your own box, and we deliver on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Good question, because we get compared to all of them, and we’re none of them.

• Unlike a traditional CSA, we don’t ask you to pay upfront for a full season or accept whatever the farm harvested that week. You shop a weekly rotating menu and choose exactly what you want with the ability to skip a delivery anytime. No seasonal commitment, no surprise kohlrabi.
• Unlike Instacart or Amazon Fresh, we’re not a logistics app pulling from grocery store shelves. About 80% of our menu comes directly from NC farms and food makers we know personally, most within 150 miles of Raleigh. For items we can’t source locally, like bananas or winter citrus, we work with local, family-owned distributors rather than national supply chains.
• Unlike meal kit services like HelloFresh or Green Chef, we don’t pre-portion your ingredients with plastic packaging or tell you what to cook. We deliver fresh, whole ingredients, and you cook however you like. We do offer prepared meals by incredible local chefs.
• Unlike a farmers market, you don’t have to wake up early on Saturday, find parking, or lug your bags home. We offer the same quality, more variety, and home delivery.

The Produce Box gives you the quality and sourcing story of a farmers market, the convenience of grocery delivery, and the flexibility of an online shop, all in one local, woman-owned company that’s been in business for 15+ years.

You don’t have to subscribe. You can place a one-time order any week you want. That said, the majority of our customers are subscribers because it’s easier. Your box shows up automatically, you never forget to order, and it saves time browsing the whole shop. With a subscription, you can customize, skip, or pause anytime. You can also save on several products by initiating a subscription, which you can find in our Subscribe & Save category.

Head to theproducebox.com and click “Sign Up.” When you enter your delivery address, our site will instantly confirm whether we deliver to you and tell you your delivery day (Tuesday or Wednesday). From there, you’ll set up your account, pay your $25 annual membership fee, and you’re ready to shop. Our menu opens every Thursday at 12pm.

There’s a $25 annual membership fee to shop with us. Think of it as the key to the shop. It unlocks access to our full weekly menu of 500+ local products and a few perks we think you’ll like:

• Referral rewards: Refer a friend and you’ll both get $25 off. No limit on how many friends you can refer. Your membership pays for itself on friend #1.
• Food access programming: Each week, we pack tens of thousands of pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables into Produce Boxes for distribution to our nonprofit partners. Your membership fee supports the infrastructure that makes these low-cost programs possible.
• Returnable, sustainable packaging: We invest in packaging materials that are cleaned and reused week to week.
• Printed media: In the digital era, we strive to keep it real. Every box includes a printed mini newsletter with storage tips, farm stories, and seasonal produce education.

Your $25 membership fee is charged within 1-2 business days of signup and auto-renews annually on your sign-up anniversary. Cancel anytime.

We deliver across the Triangle, including Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Cary, Apex, Holly Springs, Wake Forest, Morrisville, Carrboro, and surrounding neighborhoods. When you create an account and enter your address, our site instantly confirms whether you’re in our delivery zone and tells you your delivery day. You can also check our delivery map here.

Yes, despite our name, we carry a lot more than produce! Our weekly menu includes:

• Fresh and seasonal local produce
• Pasture-raised and grass-fed meat from NC farms
• Farm-fresh dairy (milk, cheese, butter, yogurt)
• Local eggs
• Fresh-baked bread and pastries from local bakeries
• Raw honey and local preserves
• Frozen meals and prepared foods by local chefs
• Pantry staples and specialty items from NC food makers

Think of us as your local farmers market and specialty grocery, delivered. Browse our full product menu at theproducebox.com.

About 80% of everything on our menu comes directly from North Carolina farms and food makers, with most producers within 150 miles of our warehouse in Raleigh. For items we can’t reliably source locally, like bananas, avocados, or winter citrus, we work with local, family-owned distributors rather than national supply chains.

We develop real relationships with every farm and artisan we carry and visit them regularly. When you order from us, you’re not buying anonymous produce from a national distribution center. You’re buying food from actual people who grow it a few counties away.

Every product page includes information about the producer and relevant tags (local, organic, naturally grown, gluten-free, pasture-raised, etc.) so you always know what you’re buying and where it came from.

Some of our producers are USDA Certified Organic, and others are not. The organic certification process is often too costly and administratively burdensome for small family farmers to pursue. Many producers use organic management practices like integrated pest management (IPM), cover cropping and composting, and planting pollinator-friendly habitats.

You can filter our site by “Organic” or “Naturally Grown” to shop by your preference, and read more about every farm we partner with at Our Producers.

All of our meat and dairy comes from small family farms in North Carolina, raised with no hormones or antibiotics. We also carry many pasture-raised, grass-fed, and Animal Welfare Certified options, which are tagged appropriately on each product page.

Most grocery store produce travels an average of 1,500 miles before reaching you, picked early and sitting in cold storage for days or weeks. Because we source directly from NC farms, most of what arrives in your box was harvested within 1-3 days of delivery. That means better flavor, better nutrition, and a longer fridge life once it’s in your home.

Our menu is open for shopping every Thursday at 12pm through Sunday at 9pm. If you’re signed up for email and SMS, you’ll get a notification Thursday when the menu goes live. During this window, you can customize your subscription Produce Box and shop our full menu to round out your order.

Orders must be at least $25 for us to deliver to you. Orders between $25-$49.99 include a $6.99 delivery fee. Orders of $50 or more get free delivery. Subscription orders must total at least $25 to auto-ship.

Our Neighborhood Ambassadors, our dedicated delivery drivers who actually live in your neighborhood, deliver on Tuesday or Wednesday between 7am and 5pm. You’ll get a text when your order is on the way and again once it’s been delivered.

When you sign up (or anytime in your profile), you can add delivery instructions telling your Neighborhood Ambassador exactly where to leave your box. Please designate a shady spot if possible. If you leave out a cooler with ice packs, your driver will transfer temperature-sensitive items into it for you.

Yes, and 100% of your tip goes straight to your Neighborhood Ambassador. Add a tip at checkout, or set up a recurring tip so it auto-applies to every order, including subscriptions. Our drivers provide exceptional service and are always grateful for the extra love.

You can make changes to your order anytime before the Sunday 9pm cutoff. Log into your account, update your cart, and click “Update/Submit Order” with your finalized selections.

After the 9pm Sunday deadline, we’re unable to accommodate changes. If you won’t be able to receive your box, we’re happy to donate it to one of our nonprofit partners, or you can gift it to a friend or neighbor. Just email info@theproducebox.com to arrange a donation.

Both options give you full access to our weekly menu. The difference is convenience.

With a subscription, your box shows up automatically every week (or biweekly, or monthly, your choice). We’ll pre-curate the best seasonal produce for your box even if you don’t log in, so you never have an empty fridge. You can customize, swap items, add on from our full 500+ product menu, skip a week, or pause anytime. This is fresh local food on autopilot.

You can also set up recurring subscriptions on individual products: eggs every week, chicken every other week, your favorite loaf of bread on repeat. Set it once and forget it, saving you time each week shopping (not to mention, driving to and from the grocery store!)

Without a subscription, you shop from scratch each week during our Thursday-Sunday ordering window, which works great if your schedule is unpredictable or you love to build a completely ala carte selection.

You can customize your box anytime during the Thursday 12pm-Sunday 9pm ordering window. Click “Customize Your Box” to adjust quantities, remove items you don’t want, and browse Recommended Add-Ons. Click “Save Customization” and “Update/Submit Order” when you’re done.

Pro tip: You’re not limited to the suggested add-ons. Browse our full menu of 500+ local products to round out your order, and hit “Update/Submit” at checkout.

Absolutely. Go to the “Subscriptions” page in your account to skip an upcoming delivery, update your delivery frequency, or pause all subscriptions at once using the green “Pause Subscriptions” button. Skip or pause before the Sunday 9pm deadline for the week you want to skip.

Complete this cancellation form and a member of our team will reach out to confirm once your cancellation has been processed.

A few things to note: if you have an upcoming order and you request cancellation after the Sunday 9pm cutoff, you’ll still be responsible for that order. If you have an outstanding balance, you’ll need to pay it before cancellation can be completed.

About 80% of everything we carry is sourced from North Carolina farms and food makers. For the remaining items, like bananas, avocados, or citrus in winter, we work with local, family-owned distributors rather than national supply chains, so your dollars stay as close to home as possible.

After 15+ years in business, we’ve found that our customers have a hard time eating only local items all winter. By adding complementary items during colder months, we’re able to support our NC farmers who are still harvesting, keep our team employed, and make sure you always have a full, nutritious fridge year-round.

Want to shop exclusively local? Apply the “LOCAL” filter in our web store to browse only produce grown within 200 miles of Raleigh.

Every dollar you spend with us goes directly back into the NC local food economy. Our subscription model helps farmers plan their crops in advance, reducing waste and financial uncertainty. A single curated Produce Box often supports 3-5 different NC farms in one delivery.

We’ve been doing this for 15+ years because we believe that how you spend your grocery dollars is one of the most direct ways to shape your local food system. Read more about our mission.

Low-waste, returnable packaging is a priority for us. On delivery day, please leave your cardboard Produce Box outside along with any rubber bands, blue quart containers, and ice packs from your previous order. Your Neighborhood Ambassador will pick them up to bring back to our warehouse for cleaning and reuse.

100% local. The Produce Box is a woman-owned small business based at the NC State Farmers Market in Raleigh, North Carolina. We’ve been serving the Triangle since 2009. We’re not a national brand, not a franchise, and not backed by a venture capital firm trying to disrupt your grocery habits. We’re a local company with local farmers and a team that lives in the same communities we deliver to.

Yes! Community food access is central to our mission. Each week, we pack tens of thousands of pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables into Produce Boxes for distribution through our nonprofit partners across the Triangle. Your annual membership fee directly supports this infrastructure. Learn more about our community programs.

We carry items suitable for a wide range of dietary preferences. Many of our products are naturally gluten-free, vegan, or dairy-free, and we label all non-produce items with relevant tags so you can filter and shop with confidence. Every non-produce item has ingredients listed, which we ask you to carefully review if you have dietary restrictions.

We reuse boxes week to week and don’t currently use separate boxes for members with allergies. You can build a box that excludes items you’re allergic to, but we cannot guarantee that there’s no residue from previous orders in reused boxes. Items tagged “Gluten Free” may not be made in certified gluten-free or allergen-free kitchens. If you have a severe allergy, please contact us at info@theproducebox.com before placing your order.

Yes. We deliver to offices, coworking spaces, medical practices, schools, and other workplaces across North Carolina.

Our Workforce Engagement Program is designed for employers who want to offer their teams a meaningful, health-focused benefit that also supports local farmers. Whether you’re looking for a recurring office fruit delivery, an employee perk program, or a community-building initiative around local food, we can work with you to build something that fits your team. Learn more at our Employee Wellness page and email info@theproducebox.com to start a conversation.

Yes, and we love welcoming new neighbors to the Triangle! If you’re a realtor, relocation coordinator, or welcome program looking to introduce new residents to the best of local NC food, we’d be happy to explore a partnership. Reach out at info@theproducebox.com.

Log in and go to the “Profile” section of your account to update your information. When you change your delivery address, please note your delivery day may change. If you’ve moved outside our delivery area, our system will let you know immediately when you enter your new address.

Your satisfaction matters to us, and we offer a 100% quality guarantee. If something in your box isn’t right or you’re missing an item, reach out to our Member Solutions team:

• Email: info@theproducebox.com
• Phone: 919-904-4722
• Online: Submit a credit request form

You can also find the credit request form in your account under Order History, “Need a Credit?”

Log in and navigate to the “Orders and Billing” page. You’ll find your account credits, past orders, and invoices here. Click “Order Details” on any past order for a full breakdown, and to add those same items back to your cart for easy reordering.