Long Island delivery services that specialize in vegetables and produce

No matter which health regimen you’ve resolved to follow this year, increasing your consumption of fresh vegetables is on the agenda. And while winter isn’t typically the best time of year for food shopping, the COVID-19 pandemic has actually widened the options for procuring produce. Wholesalers who formerly served only the restaurant market have now pivoted to retail, and new online sources have sprung up. Best of all: These six produce specialists deliver. Now there’s no excuse for not eating your vegetables.

ASIAN VEGGIES

Queens-based Fresh Goods Trading specializes in selling produce to Asian markets and other wholesalers, but the COVID-caused contraction of the sector was taking a huge toll on sales. That’s what motivated the founder’s son, Joe Boo, to rejigger the business to reach customers in their homes.

On the menu: A full line of Asian vegetables such as Chinese mustard greens (gai choy, $3.49 / 2 pounds), Chinese celery ($3.59 / 1½ pounds), Thai eggplant ($5.50 / 2 pounds), fresh turmeric ($2.39 / 4 ounces) plus "conventional" vegetables and Asian groceries such as Chinese sausage and Japanese KitKat bars.

Delivery: Asian Veggies delivers to Nassau County every Wednesday; place your order by 6 p.m. on Tuesday night. Suffolk customers can arrange to meet the delivery truck in Nassau. Free delivery for orders over $100 order; $4 for orders between $50 and $100; $8 for under $50.

More info: asian-veggies.com

BALDOR

Baldor is one of the Northeast’s largest wholesale importers and distributors of fresh produce and specialty foods, a staple supplier of fine restaurants and markets. All the staples are here, as well as foie gras, fiddlehead ferns and beef cheeks and pretty much anything you have ever eaten.

On the menu: Among the rarer treasures Baldor is selling this winter are Castelfranco radicchio ($41.99 / 2 heads) and tardivo ($13.99 / 2 heads), baby artichokes ($9.99 / 2 pounds), Ataulfo mangoes (the sweet, little ones, $15.99 / 7 to 8 pounds), fresh black truffles ($65 / ounce) and fresh white Alba truffles ($580 / 2 ounces).

Delivery: The minimum order for Long island delivery is $150 (plus $5.99 delivery fee) but the fee is waived for orders over $200. Order by 11 p.m. for next-day delivery.

More info: baldorfood.com

KRYSTAL FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

Back in the spring, Mike Longo, the owner of this Westbury-based wholesale produce supplier, turned his business around in a day to address the needs of retail customers. Nothing fancy here, just what you’d expect to find in a good supermarket.

On the menu: Grape tomatoes ($3/pint), Idaho potatoes ($2.95 / 3 pounds), romaine lettuce ($1.95 / pound), fresh string beans ($2.75 / pound), frozen string beans ($3.50 / 2 pounds), frozen artichoke hearts ($4.75 / 2 pounds) and, for smoothie-makers, mixed frozen berries ($19.95 / 5 pounds).

Delivery: Free delivery all over Long Island. Order by noon for next-day delivery.

More info: 516-338-6868, nyfooddelivery.org

MISFITS MARKET

This national company delivers subscription boxes of organic fruits and vegetables that can’t be sold to supermarkets because they are too small, or crooked or otherwise misshapen and would otherwise be discarded. Their "misfit" status cuts the price by up to 40%.

On the menu: A "mischief" box, containing 12 different types of fruits and vegetables and meant for 1 to 2 people is $22; a "madness" box, 14 types, for 3 to 5 people, is $35. In winter, expect to find organic apples, potatoes, squash, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, citrus, lettuces/leafy greens, onions, and / or peppers.

Delivery: When you sign up for weekly or biweekly subscription, you’ll choose a preferred delivery day. Shipping is $5.50.

More info: misfitsmarket.com

OURHARVEST

Michael Winik’s Hicksville-based company has been delivering local (and largely organic) produce and groceries since 2013. The inventory includes fruits and vegetables plus sustainably raised poultry and dairy, fresh fish and an array of kitchen staples from olive oil to cracked oats. During the pandemic, OurHarvest has been a lifeline to local farms trying to reach their customers.

On the menu: Winter selections include Gotham Greens butterhead lettuce ($3.99), Satur Farms cut mixed kale ($5.49 / pound), Norwich Meadows Adirondack blue potatoes ($6.49 / pound) and organic red beets ($4.99 / pound). Because most of OurHarvest’s produce is grown at small, local farms, items often sell out.

Delivery: OurHarvest delivers to most of Nassau and Suffolk. Enter your ZIP code to see whether they deliver to you and, if so, on what day of the week. Ordering is easy to navigate and requires no membership.

More info: ourharvest.com

RUSTIC ROOTS

Jeff Moore and Emer Lloyd-Moore’s Ronkonkoma-based company source produce from Long Island and all over the Northeast and try, whenever possible, to buy organic.

On the menu: You have your choice of organic fruit and vegetable boxes ($55 for a regular box, $47 for a small) or a fully customized order. In addition to fresh produce (2 heads of organic red leaf lettuce for $7.99, organic jalapeños for $5.99, 2 bunches of organic Tuscan kale for $7.99), Rustic Roots also freezes local produce to offer frozen shelled fava beans ($5.99 / pound), frozen diced fennel ($6.99 / pound) and frozen mirepoix ($6.99 for 8 ounces).

Delivery: Rustic Roots delivers to most of Long Island for a flat fee of $11.95. Order by midnight on Saturday and you’ll receive delivery information by Wednesday.

More info: rusticrootsdelivery.com