review: azure standard
I am so excited to share that I do believe I have found an exceptional option for purchasing low-waste foods: Azure Standard! They’re available to people in almost all parts of the US. I just completed my first order (bear this in mind when reading this post; I am not yet a long-time customer), and I am very pleased with the products and the process!
I’ve been shopping at Costco for bulk goods during the pandemic, but I just don’t feel great about all the waste, and they also don’t carry a lot of the items I need in bulk (how do they not sell dry beans!?). Basically, Costco and I tried each other out, and we’re just not a good fit. At first meeting, Azure and I seem to be made for each other! Here’s some more info:
What’s Azure all about?
From their website: “Azure’s goal is to provide the best, most affordable prices for families by operating on a cost-plus basis and passing on any savings when costs go down. We purchase large quantities from independent manufacturers and food makers in order to ensure you get the best quality food available anywhere. We work hard to provide volume discounts where we can, encouraging our customers to buy in quantities they can share with family and friends.”
I love that they encourage sharing with others. I bought large quantities of several items and then delivered portions of them to my friends and neighbors. Less waste for all and serious financial savings too!
What do they sell?
Azure sells a whole range of food products, including many “name brands.” But I was most excited about their own label, under which they sell grains, flours, spices, legumes, pasta, seeds, nuts, dried fruits and more! Most items come in compostable brown paper bags (I called them before ordering to confirm this), and most items are sold in quantities of less than a pound up to 20, 30, 50 pounds or even more. The product pages include lots of information about the origin, processing, and ingredients of every item. This made it easy to make sure I was getting exactly what I wanted. For example, they note that their olive oil is not processed using hexane. This is important information can be hard for consumers to find.
How does shipping work?
When you place an order, you can opt to pay for shipping to your home, or you can have it sent to one of Azure’s many “drop sites.” These are spots along their truck routes where a drop coordinator unloads several orders for customers to pick up. This reduces the stops a truck has to make by consolidating orders (read: reduces carbon emissions!). You can look for a drop site near you: they’re in most larger cities and lots of smaller towns, too. Some locations are eligible for free shipping, while other areas (Colorado) pay a 8.5% shipping fee.
What’s the catch?
I’m not sure there is one! It’s a particular way to get groceries, which appeals to me, but of course it won’t be the right fit for everyone. Here are a few more things to be aware of:
“Drops” are made once a month. This means you need to plan ahead and get your order in by the cut-off time. (Although, you can pay for shipping to your house anytime.)
My pick-up site was at a woman’s house. She was very accommodating about when I came to pick up my items. I imagine most drop coordinators are like this, but I can only speak to my one experience.
Some items came in plastic bags. I’ve gotten pretty used to plastic packaging during the pandemic, but this is just something I wanted to flag for those of you who are striving to be zero-waste!
They don’t have puy lentils. I really like puy lentils.
Here are some of the products and prices of what I bought in my first order:
Organic Roasted Peanuts - 30 pounds @ $3.16/lb
Organic raw cashews - 5 pounds @ $6.48/lb
Organic raw pumpkin seeds (imported) - 5 pounds @ $3.88/lb
Organic golden raisins - 5 pounds @ $3.12/lb
Organic Thomson raisins - 5 pounds @ $2.46/lb
Organic mango (no sugar added) - 1 pound for $11.48
Organic red lentils - 25 pounds @ $1.93/lb
Organic Great Northern Beans - 5lb @ $1.27/lb
Organic dry black beans - 25 pounds @ $1.59/lb
Organic popcorn kernels - 5 pounds @ $1.77/lb
Organic old-fashioned oats - 25 pounds @ $1.00/lb
Organic fusilli pasta - 10 pounds @ $2.25/lb
Organic Einkorn flour - 5 pounds for $18.63
Organic Spelt flour - 5 pounds for $7.66
Organic white whole wheat bread flour - 10 pounds for $12.08
Organic olive oil - 1 gallon for $35.37
Sappo Hill Soap - 3 x 3.5oz bars for $5.87 total
Is it a good deal financially?
Having bought foods from bulk bins for year prior to the pandemic, I’ve memorized many per-pound prices. The prices above, are definitely less expensive than most typical grocery stores. A few items that stand out as particularly good deals: pumpkin seeds, raisins, peanuts, olive oil, pasta. Keep in mind the prices get lower the more you order and I bought 25 pounds of several items.
Is it a good environmental choice?
The more I think and learn about sustainability, the more I realize that everything we do has an impact on the earth. It’s not possible to live on our earth and not change it in some way. Keeping this in mind, all you can do is try to make the best choices possible with the options available. I can’t speak with authority since I’ve done zero actual studies, but given my knowledge of environmental impacts, here are a few considerations:
Food waste is a huge contributor to carbon emissions, so buying 25 pounds of beans is only a good choice is you’re going to consume 25 pounds of beans (or share them with your neighbors!).
Another significant chunk of emissions related to food come from agriculture and food production. Azure provides detailed information on their website about the production and ingredients of their products. Their “Core Values” and “Product Standards” indicate their care deeply about soil health, sustainable farming practices, removing harmful chemicals from our food, and more.
The food you bring into your home also has an environmental impact based on how it traveled to your house. From the farm to factory, factory to packaging plant, packaging plant to distribution center, distribution center to grocery store, grocery store to your home. Azure takes out of a few of those steps, and also delivers to just a few drop sites in each city, meaning their trucks drive less than a truck from, say, a Kroger grocery store.
Lastly, the packaging waste from my order was minimal. Granted, I only ordered bulk goods from the Azure brands (they sell several items wrapped in plastic). Also, my order was packaged in larger boxes that had been repurposed. Almost all the packaging I received was recyclable or compostable.
More questions?
Leave a comment below or send me a note! I love talking about all things grocery shopping and low waste.
Have you ordered from Azure? Do you think you’ll try it? Do you want to buy a few pounds of beans or oats from me? Happy to share my bulk or to order a few things for you next month!