• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, July 1, 2015

Catering to its shoppers’ lust for local, Peapod is now offering the Peapod Local Farm Box, which gives consumers all of the perks of a CSA with none of the commitment. Working with a company called FarmLogix, which links farms to businesses, it is offering consumers a more convenient twist on conventional CSA (or Community Supported Agriculture) farm shares.

“We know natural and organic products are important to our customers, and are in about half of all our baskets,” says Peg Merzbacher, VP of regional marketing for Peapod. “But CSAs can be daunting and expensive. It’s a hassle to have to drive to a location for very specific pick-up times, or to figure out what to do with mountains of kale.” 

The box costs $35, and includes between 10 and 14 pounds of produce. The website provides information about the week’s items, including details on the local farm it comes from, and links to recipes. “We think it will really appeal to our customers who are a little more adventurous, and eager to do more to support local growers, without having to commit for a whole season.”

CSAs, along with farmers’ markets, are still growing  fast, especially among health-conscious Baby Boomers and environmentally motivated Millennials. While there are no official numbers, LocalHarvest.org, the largest CSA directory, says it has more than 4,000 in its database.

Merzbacher tells Marketing Daily that the idea has been well received so far, and that the company, a division of grocery giant Ahold, is reaching out to bloggers and other food influencers to spread the word. 

While many neophyte online shoppers may be leery of buying produce, she says it doesn’t last long. “Most people begin by ordering packaged goods, but quickly get over that concern. Perishables are a significant part of our business.”

Peapod is based in Chicago (where it tested farm boxes last year), and is also offering the Local Farm Box in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington D.C., Virginia, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. 

While Americans are still among the world’s most resistant to buying groceries online, that’s changing. In its latest report, Nielsen says some 19% of U.S. shoppers sometimes order groceries online for home delivery, and another 58% are willing to. And 12% already use an automatic subscription, while 14% have ordered online and picked groceries up in-store.