Why are the prices changing?
The short story: the prices increased for our farms to operate earlier this year and we finally decided to start portioning the Atlantic salmon.
The long story: globally, the cost of food has increased because of the ongoing virus. Since March 2020, we have seen several challenges with how food goes from the farm to you. Several processing plants across North America were hit with closures delaying the amount of meat in processed and driving up the price of meat as well as other products. According to Bloomberg, the cost of meat and produce could rise 4.5 per cent - 6.5 per cent and bakery items could rise 3.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent. Unfortunately, in the traditional grocery supply chain, the inflated prices benefits everyone but ranchers.
Why change the prices now?
There is no right time for a price change. We have been hesitant for awhile to increase prices but, for the health of Bessie and our partnered farms + businesses, we really need to.
What is the price increase?
It depends on the products and boxes. Ground beef is a dollar more per pound, while steaks and fish have increased more than a dollar. I share the box changes and build-your-own option below.
Will the prices change in the future?
That’s hard to know and will depend on the global recovery post-pandemic. With that being said, we work so closely with our partners and farmers which makes it easier for us to be creative. We are working with them and other partners to find solutions.
Why are the boxes changing?
A few reasons:
- Many of them weren’t being purchased that consistently. We removed them to make space for other things.
- We have more products and want to offer products that align with our partnered farms needs. The majority of the farms we work with lost sales with the closure of restaurants and other food service companies. To help them, we started buying up anything they had a hard time selling like sirloin steaks, mangalista pork chops or chicken drumsticks. Thanks to your curiousity to try new things, many farms and local businesses (sauce brands + breweries) have been able to keep the lights on.
- We realized you need more flexibility with your packages because we weren't nailing the swaps 100% of the time. Our solution was to create a "build your own" option that can be subscribed to. You will still get a discount, all the Culinary Clubs benefits and exclusives.
What are in the new boxes?
We reconfigured some of them to include new products that our farms were struggling to move but some of them stayed the same.
- The Classic Bessie Box is now Bessies Classics. The small size stayed the same. The large size, we added a steak.
- The Family Pack is now Family Faves. There is one size. We added chicken drumsticks, cod and portioned Atlantic salmon.
- The Mediterranean Box is still called the Mediterranean Box. There are two sizes. We added cod and chicken drumsticks.
- The Sea & Grass Box is now called the Home Chef. There are two sizes. We added sockeye salmon portions.
- The Test Kitchen is still called the Test Kitchen. There is one size. We removed the chicken breast and added atlantic salmon portions and chicken drumsticks.
What boxes did you remove?
We removed the following:
- The Meal Prep Pack - it was our least shopped.
- The Grill Pack - there were many people that loved the steaks but wanted to swap out the maui ribs.
- The Seafood Box - one of our least shopped.
Can you keep your old box?
Unfortunately, no. We will work with you to either swap you into something similar or something else that fits your needs better.
What does the build-your-own Culinary Club option look like?
- Products: we have bundled nearly everything into twos, fours or eights except for brisket, whole chickens, roasts, marrow bones. You can view everything here.
- Discounts: you will get a 5% discount on each item. Except beer and wine (we aren't allowed according to the AGLC).
- Freebies: you will still get a freebie every month/two months (depending on your delivery schedule).
- Exclusives: you will still be the first to know about ham, prime rib and more.
Now the semi-good news!
Our new system will make it easier than ever to adjust your orders. We are still working out some kinks but, when it goes live, it will make your Bessie experience so much better. You want something every two weeks? You can do that! You want chicken thighs in your upcoming order? It will be easier for you to make that swap yourself. When the kinks are solved, we will let you know!
What next?
If you are a member of the Culinary Club or want to become a part of it, shoot us an email at get@bessiebox.com.