Door to Door Organics FAQ

I have been using Door to Door Organics for my organic produce delivery for some time now. This is a list of questions I get asked a lot when recommending Door to Door Organics (henceforth referred to as DTDO) to others. I will state that I do highly recommend this company because I find their business model to be sound, especially from a moral standpoint.

What is Door to Door Organics?

DTDO “delivers fresh organic produce and groceries throughout Michigan” per their website. They also have operations on the east coast, outside Chicago, Kansas City, and Colorado. This FAQ only addresses the operation in Michigan because that is what I am most familiar with, though I do not believe the other locations work much differently.

How often can I get produce delivered? Is it seasonal only?

DTDO offers weekly deliveries or bi-weekly deliveries. When you sign up, you can determine your schedule of deliveries. At this time, you will also determine what size delivery you’d like based on your produce consumption habits. The following general guide is from the website:

The Bitty: Perfect starter box for the single cook, roommates, or a couple.
The Small: A good size for a couple that cooks, and might have a small child.
The Medium: Works for a hearty vegetarian couple, or a family with a couple of veggie and fruit minded children.
The Large: Should satisfy the needs of most any family, and if not you can always order more.

There is also a weekly menu you can view from the website which gives you an idea of what will be in a box in a given week. That can be found here.

Another option is that you can have a delivery every other week but stagger what kind of box you get. So for instance, if you know you want a small box every other week mixed with fruits and veggies, but you tend to run out of fruits after the first week, you can get a bitty box delivered every other week containing just fruit.

DTDO operates year-round. This means that you get organic produce all year from around the US. In the growing season, DTDO provides as much local organic produce as they can. This is not a CSA, so your produce is not Dependant on how well a farm’s crop performs in a given year.

What if I am going on vacation?

You can set a vacation notice so no deliveries will be provided in a given week (and you are not charged for deliveries you do not receive).

How do you know what you’re going to get?

Let’s talk about a given week. On Friday after lunchtime, usually around 1:30, you will receive an email with the “menu” for the week. It will list your fruits and veggies and the quantity of each. The quantities are quite literal. Sometimes things are in pounds, like potatoes. Other times, it will say exactly how many you can expect to receive.

Your scheduled delivery day is determined based on where you live and you will be informed of this when you sign up. Delivery is included in the cost of the box when you sign up. They will leave the box wherever you tell them to, there is a section for notes to leave the delivery person so you can communicate to them. The box will be left per your instructions. During the summer months, there is an ice pack included to keep the veggies at room temperature.

I, as well as DTDO, recommend putting a cooler in the location you wish the produce to be left. They will then remove the items from the box and place them in the cooler. This keeps everything fresh! If you do get ice packs or a box, they ask that you leave them in your drop off location the following week so they can reuse them.

How do you exchange items? What if I want more of something?

The same menu will also appear in your DTDO account online. From the online page, you will see a button next to each item that will say “Sub” meaning “substitute.” If you do not want an item, click on the “sub” button next to it. A new page will appear listing all of your possible substitutions for that item.

Substitutions are equivalent to what you are exchanging, and they are pre-set. For instance, 1 mango may exchange for 1 onion, but a pack of strawberries may exchange to 3. It is based somewhat on the value of the item. Once you sub an item, you can click the “un-sub” button to change it back to what it was. YOU CAN ONLY MAKE 3 SUBSTITUTIONS PER WEEK.

As a note, you can set preferences on the website. Think cilantro is gross? Add it to your “Do not send” list, and it won’t even appear on your menu.

Also on the webpage is a link along the top that says “Shop”. You can click on this link and it will take you to the grocery store of DTDO. From here, you can add additional items including more fruits and veggies, pastas, sauces, organic juices, etc. If you do add any items, they will be added to your delivery list and delivered along with your normal box the following week.

You have until 8am the day BEFORE your scheduled delivery to add new items or make substitutions. My delivery day is Tuesday, so by 8am on Monday I must have made all of my substitutions or additions.

How do they charge you?

You can associate a credit card with your account, and you are charged only on the day of delivery.

How do referral credits work?

Everyone likes free stuff! When you refer someone to DTDO, or when you sign up yourself, you have the option to put in a name of someone who is with DTDO who referred you. Then they get free fruits and veggies! Hooray!

Is every piece of produce you get perfect quality?

No, but the majority of it is fantastic. Keep in mind that because the produce is organic, pesticides and preservatives are not used, so fruit can look a little more off than things you’ll find in the store. Plus, as the seasons change, some fruit or veggies will be a bit early or late in the season, so they are not perfect. However, DTDO is excellent about reimbursing its members for inedible produce. You can contact them through the website.

Do you have other questions? Please email me at lokiskitchen at gmail.com so I can add them to this page!

I am in no way associated with DTDO. I am only an active consumer and admirer of their work.