Farm-fresh berries at your desk
July 20, 2006
Brothers launch direct-delivery venture
Derrick Penner
Vancouver Sun
Thursday, July 20, 2006
A Pitt Meadows blueberry farm is betting that busy business people will like the idea of getting blueberries delivered to their desks rather than having to shop for their favourite fruit.
Former environmental engineer Ricki Sahota used to sell blueberries from his family's farm to colleagues and friends on an ad-hoc basis. Sahota worked on the farm during summers, and would send out e-mails to collect orders. He also used blueberry sales to raise money for his Dragon Boat team.
"I thought maybe this could be an interesting idea and a way for me to go back into the family business,"Sahota said.
So he and his twin brother Newton have formally launched the concept as a business,which is part direct-to-consumer sales and part fundraising effort, under the name Twin Berry Farms Inc.
Companies can sign up for direct delivery allowing their employees to place orders online for five-pound boxes of fresh berries that are guaranteed to be delivered within 32 hours of being picked.
Sahota added that Twin Berry's price, $3 per pound, is competitive with prices being charged at market.
"We're really catering to the fact that a lot of people don't have time to buy produce," Sahota said. "We get [blueberries] straight to them in a way that's easy."
Plus, it delivers a healthy food to workers that"is better than a vending machine."
As an added bonus, Sahota said Twin Berry Farms will direct $2.25 from the sale of every five-pound box to the charity of a participating company's choice.
Sahota said Twin Berry can afford to offer the prices that it does, and divert some of the revenue to charity, because it is a "vertically integrated" operation. They own their 65-hectare farm in Pitt Meadows as well as their own processing plant and distribution network, which generates savings that are passed on to customers.
Sahota also contends that by delivering directly to consumers, Twin Berry is helping consumers reduce their environmental impact.
"The whole idea is local produce to the local market," Sahota said. "We're trying to focus on a 100-mile radius and[to]keep it as local as possible."
While the Sahotas' company is brand new, Ricki said the response to date has been gratifying with 40 companies signing up for delivery since Twin Berry's launch.
