Off the Vine started in 2002 in Alpharetta, Georgia. Founder Shana Wolf began it as a part-time business. In the six years since, she says, “We’ve grown a lot.” Off the Vine’s mission is home delivery of fresh organic produce, dairy, coffee and bread to individual consumers. It is not a subscription service, or a food-of-the-week club, and customers can buy or not as they choose.

Wolf says she found herself thinking about produce, specifically its freshness, and decided that the crucial factor was length of time between field and table. Retail did not seem to be the answer. “I wanted to avoid the crystal ball, and it was too much money.” Rather than open a market and hope the customers would come, Wolf decided that the best way was home delivery, on order. Business began to grow in the Alpharetta area, and eventually Off the Vine expanded to offer its services all over the southeast.

Cities served include Atlanta, Athens and Savannah; Pensacola; Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga; cities in North and South Carolina; Birmingham; and Pensacola, Panama City and Destin. Wolf now has two business associates—Cecilia Smith, who handles quality control, and bookkeeper Carol Elam.

Off the Vine does business both by telephone and online. Each of the listed cities has its own weekly delivery day and an order deadline. In this area, the deadline is Monday for Wednesday delivery. Payments are made in advance by specified credit or debit cards, avoiding the need for the delivery driver to carry or handle cash or take checks. The Web site contains a list of box sizes with their contents. The produce varies weekly and seasonally, and there is a separate list of dairy, coffee, and bread. Off the Vine procures produce first from growers in Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and the southeast, then from growers in other U.S. states. All produce is USDA certified organic.

Box sizes are small, medium and large, and contain produce for one week. Off the Vine makes its weekly choices based on what the farmers say looks good. “Farmers know best,” says Wolf. “I believe in using what they grow and depending on their expertise.” Off the Vine has a steady group of growers, and Wolf respects their efforts to achieve certification. “It takes years to get soil USDA certified organic,” she says.

Off the Vine relies on the services on part-time drivers, “moms’ groups,” and delivery companies to get the produce to the buyers on time and in good condition. As with any deliveries made in the sultry south, speed and cold play a large part. Items are packed in cold storage, brought out for boxing in small quantities, and boxed in paper bags with a frozen water bottle to prolong the chill. “We strive to be as close to perfect as we can,” says Wolf.

A look on the Web site shows the items available these days. They include peaches, mangoes, canary melons, eggplant, heirloom tomatoes, yellow squash, and blueberries. Other items include Yukon gold potatoes and greens from Colorado. The dairy (milk, cream, and butter) comes from Sparkman’s Dairy of Georgia. The bread and baked goods come from Great Harvest Bread Company, and coffee from Cafe Campesino. Off the Vine has also begun supplying a few area restaurants, and hopes to gain a presence in the area schools. Future plans include adding fresh-pressed juices, raw foods such as seeds and nuts, and healthy raw snacks.

Wolf offers to deliver some sample produce, promising a “small box” in two days. Two days later, a truck pulls up and out steps a driver with a 20-by-13 inch cardboard box full of items neatly packed in brown paper, including a semi-frozen bottle of water.

The opened package yields a cantaloupe, canary melon, box of alfalfa sprouts, three yellow squash, three black and white peppers, a box of heirloom cherry tomatoes, two large tomatoes, two red onions, four Yukon golds, six peaches, about a half-dozen eggplants in assorted sizes, and sheaves of romaine lettuce and spinach. This is for a week.

As of this writing, I have shared some of the produce, eaten an enormous salad, and had my first taste of a canary melon. It’s bright yellow (like the bird), with a sweet and juicy flesh that looks like a ripe pear. Everything else—the heavy, succulent tomatoes, crisp lettuce and spinach, and spicy sprouts—is first rate, recalling Wolf’s comment during the interview: “If your refrigerator is full of the right choices, it’s easy to eat right.”

Off the Vine has two telephone contact numbers for orders: (404) 317-7459 in Georgia, and (850) 374-2181 in Florida. Orders can also be placed at www.offthevineproduce.com. The Web site lists what’s available, prices and delivery fees, information on organic food, links, and recipes.

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