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The Best Sustainable Food Delivery in London

We’re Good Hemp and we’ve made a Londoner’s guide of all the best food delivery services, along with sustainable local grocers, vegan recipes from our community and ideas for growing your own vegetables, fruit and herbs. Think of it as a one stop shop, a lockdown larder if you please, with all the ingredients you need to start buying from sustainable local food brands in your area.

 

Building Better Food Habits

 

Globally, we’re all having to change the way we shop and as a result how we think about food. The early lockdown panic of searching for bananas has led us to meal subscription services or local green grocers that we might not have used otherwise. We’re thinking more about the ingredients that affect our mood and how we can minimise waste. It’s brought things like shopping locally and supporting small businesses into the public conversation. And that’s a positive. But we need to make sure that our new delivery habits are as sustainable as possible.

 

We’ve been having these conversations for a while here at Good Hemp. (One of our favourite articles from last Summer was all about buying things in season). We’re a small and sustainable business that’s been around since 1998 making honest food and drinks out of hemp seeds – that are as good for the planet as for the people on it. So when we were deciding how we could contribute, we thought we’d stick to what we know: sustainable food that makes you feel good.

 

Getting Your Food Delivered

 

To help make sustainable food more accessible, we’ve made all our products shoppable online, so you can get your hemp goodness delivered straight to your door. That’s hemp milk for the dairy-free, hemp seeds which are great for plant protein, and hemp oil to replace your everyday olive, along with our CBD oil drops. No 25 minute queue outside your local supermarket or online Ocado purgatory.

 

Some of our favourite cooks have written some delicious vegan recipes too, to start bringing hemp into your daily routine. We’ve also pulled together our collection of small businesses, local initiatives, homegrown independents and sustainable food brands that can deliver to your door. It’s important that we have access to healthy and sustainable food – and that it doesn’t break the bank trying to get it. And those who need their dairy free milks, gluten free pasta, and meat free substitutes can get them too.

 

We see the hard work that big supermarkets are doing, but we also know that there are other companies who can satisfy all our essential food needs. We want to shout about those companies.

 

Welcome to Good Hemp’s Sustainable Food Delivery Guide.

Online grocery shopping

Look, maybe you’ve never been one to shop for food online because it conjures up images of countless plastic bags lining your hallway; or maybe you’re just one of those people who likes to feel their fruit before they decide on which tomato to go for. But online grocery shopping doesn’t have to be all single-use plastic, queuing for days online and terrible swaps because they don’t have the kind of squash you asked for. There are some amazing sustainable food brands who care about all the same things we do. Local produce, no GMO, minimal packaging and more. Like Karma who deliver fresh boxes of surplus fruit and veg. Or Abel & Cole, the OG fruit + veg box delivery service that has been sourcing sustainable produce and slinging spuds for over 30 years.

The Best Recipe Boxes + Meal Subscription Services

There are times when we want to nurture our sourdough starter, make pasta from scratch, slow cook a stew and bake so many vegan cookies that our housemates actually beg us to stop feeding them (ok that will never happen; they always want more). But sometimes, we just want to put a tray in the oven and for something delicious to come out. Or maybe you want to cook a great meal from scratch but you don’t want to queue for the last aubergine at Sainsbury’s when you could be enjoying a glass of wine and Grey’s Anatomy reruns. Luckily for us all, there’s a huge array of options out there: from recipe boxes that give you the exact portions, ingredients and instructions to make a delicious dinner, to pre-cooked meal subscriptions that are sustainable and healthy.

Too Good To Go

Too Good To Go is the largest marketplace for surplus food in the world, which means unsold food from retailers can go to people rather than landfill. Their Magic Bags tell you the gist of what you’re getting (it could be pastries, or it could be sandwiches), but really it’s a total surprise. And we could all use a little excitement right now, couldn’t we?

Karma App

We believe in karma – when doing something good (planting hemp!) actually leads to something good (helping the environment!). We also believe in Karma app, a delivery service that’s all about zero waste and rescuing surplus veg. Karma delivers boxes full of fruit and veg sourced from farmers, producers and wholesalers that otherwise would have been wasted. Win, win.

OLIO app

'Share more. Waste less.' OLIO's mantra is one we are definitely on board with, and these change-makers are doing an incredible job of bringing that to life by connecting people to share food, rather than throw it away.

The Cookaway

It’s been A+ for effort as we’ve tried to cook authentic Japanese yakitori and Keralan curries during lockdown, but The Cookaway’s recipe boxes give a leg up when you need it. Choose global menus created by experienced chefs, receive the ingredients and a handy set of instructions to cook up a storm.

Planty

We’re all about that plant-based life, but sometimes we’re not all about spending hours in the kitchen prepping food (people to see at a social distance, dogs to pet from afar). We’re fans of Planty, a freshly frozen meal delivery service, who are part of a movement to fight climate change through the food we eat.

Feed Me Vegan

Back when ready meals were just lasagnes and pies, there wasn’t much in the way of meat or dairy free alternatives. Now there’s Feed Me Vegan which brings all the vegan and gluten-free goodness of a comforting pre-prepared meal, all wrapped up in eco-friendly packaging. We’re basically living off their chilli.

One Planet Pizza

Pizza for dinner (or breakfast?) – but make it vegan. One Planet Pizza is the UK’s first frozen vegan pizza purveyor, who have now started delivering. Keep your freezer well stocked with dairy-free cheesy delights for those Friday nights in. Because what other nights are there?

Mindful Chef

Mindful eating is more than just really concentrating on whether or not to have seconds (always). It’s about understanding what you’re putting in your body – sometimes easier said than done. Which is why Mindful Chef provides recipe boxes so you can cook nutritionally balanced and healthy meals at home.

COOK food shop

Imagine if your parents came over and stocked your refrigerator with all types of deliciousness. Pies, veggie lasagne, a mushroom wellington – you name it. That’s pretty much what it feels like with COOK who make delicious homemade frozen food than you can count on. Great for nights when you just don’t want to chop another onion.

All Plants meals

You’ve 100% heard of All Plants, the vegan meal delivery service that serves up plant-based dishes cooked by chefs and sent to your door. For those more vegan-ish eaters in the house, they’ve got menus that cater to a slightly more flexi diet – perfect for your housemate who said they’d go vegan but you keep catching them snacking on fromage at midnight.

Vegan Recipes to Make at Home

It’s safe to say that we have never been more into cooking now that we’ve all been staying home more. Which is great – way healthier and way more sustainable (damn those plastic Deliveroo delivery tubs!). As we speak we’ve got sourdough starter growing in a jar and a loaf in the oven (that was not a brag, we ate beans on toast yesterday). Thankfully there’s a host of amazing vegan bloggers online who can help us when we’re not feeling too inspired, have exhausted that one cake recipe passed down from our grandma or just are looking to widen our repertoire. We asked a few of them to contribute some recipes, seeing as the nation has pivoted to baking, roasting, blitzing and stirring, sometimes all at once. Whether you’re after a wholesome curry or vegan cookies to munch with your tea on the sofa, they’ve got you covered.

Hemp Seed Streusel Muffins

  • Description
  • Ingredients
  • Method

If you’re anything like us, your baking skills will have improved dramatically in 2020. The extra time + diminished opportunity to buy sweet treats has turned our nation to baking, with banana bread becoming as synonymous with British culture as tea. But now we want to put forward a new challenge – the streusel muffin. Whilst you might not recognise the name, you’ll definitely be familiar with their defining feature, the crumbly top. We all know the top is the best bit of the muffin, and what could make it better? Hemp seeds, duh!

This recipe was crafted for us by the aptly named Top With Cinnamon aka Izy Hossack who’s gloriously hemp-ified this treat. We’ll be enjoying them for breakfast, elevenses, tea at 3 and pudding, although they do last for 5 days if you can stay away for that long!

 

  • 150g granulated sugar
  • 220g apple sauce (unsweetened) or mashed banana
  • 80ml oil of choice (hemp seed, sunflower etc)
  • 75ml Good Hemp Seed Milk
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 190g plain white flour
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1/4 tsp fine table salt
  • Streusel topping:
  • 60g plain white flour
  • 60g light brown sugar
  • 45g vegan block butter
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 40g The Good Hemp Seed Hearts
  1. Preheat the oven to 180C fan and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, apple sauce, oil, hemp milk, vinegar and vanilla. Whisk together until smooth.

  2. Then add in the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Stir with the whisk until the flour has been incorporated and the batter is mostly smooth – (careful not to overmix here!)

  3. Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups equally and set aside.

  1. For the streusel:
  2. In a separate (medium) bowl, combine the flour, light brown sugar, vegan butter and cinnamon. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour/sugar until you get a sandy mixture with no large lumps of butter remaining. When you have this consistency, then stir in the hemp seeds.

  3. Sprinkle this crumbly mixture equally over the batter in the 12 muffin cups. You can pile it up a bit as some will sink into the batter below as it bakes.

  4. Bake for 22-27 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into one of the centre muffins comes out clean. Leave to cool before removing from the muffin tin because burning your hands isn’t fun – but don’t be surprised if a couple go missing before completely cooled, the freshly baked muffin smell will fill the house and is pretty irresistible.

Thai Red Curry with Hemp Crusted Tofu

This delicious vegan curry was created especially for us by our friends Dan and Jess, a.k.a. @Vegan_Punks. It’s the perfect comfort food for if you’re feeling a bit down after scrolling the news on Twitter, or if you want to prepare a big meal for the special occasion of meeting up with your friends again. […]

Chocolate, Espresso & Almond Blondies

Samah Lakha, (London Bruncher) created this very special recipe for vegan blondies using our hemp seed milk and oil and her very own organic almond & espresso butter. At the moment, Samah’s homemade nut butter is only available on her website and at Raoul’s deli in Maida Vale, so get your hands on it while […]

Vegan Snacks + Sustainable Drinks

Although there are a few perks to working from home (Zoom outfits: business on the top, casual on the bottom), what we do miss about being out and about in the office is the daily – ok, mostly twice a day – outings to grab snacks, coffees and after-work drinks. Popping to the local bakery for a vegan cupcake, grabbing coffee from your favourite roastery, or heading to the pub for a Friday night pint – these are all things that we can’t experience from the comfort of our own homes. Or can we? There are  sustainable coffee shops like Ozone delivering their beans to your door, organic winemakers like Wanderlust Wine sending you their best vino, craft beer shops like Honest Brew never letting you miss your Friday drinks, and the infamous Fauxmagerie keeping you supplied with mouthwatering vegan cheese to accompany it all. These are the brands who’ve got your drinks and snacks delivery sorted.

Ozone Coffee Roasters

Remember meeting friends at your favourite coffee shop? Sigh. Luckily East London’s Ozone Coffee is delivering their goods to your door. Since they were just three people roasting out of a shop in New Zealand, Ozone has always been about sustainable sourcing, reducing waste and supporting coffee farmers.

Wanderlust Wine

Has anyone else become an amateur sommelier during lockdown? In the absence of people with real life wine knowledge, we’ve been counting on the good folks at Wanderlust Wine to supply us with all the organically farmed, biodynamic wine from small producers. Good for the planet, good for every night of the week (just us?).

La Fauxmagerie

We love nothing more than a bit of vegan cheese and a good pun. Enter La Fauxmagerie, the UK’s first dairy-free cheesemonger, delivering the finest plant-based charcuterie and cheeses as well as delightful selection boxes – because being vegan doesn’t mean you can’t indulge in a fanciful cheese board, darling.

Little Cooks Co

Parents during lockdown, we salute you. Keeping kids fed, happy and entertained is no mean feat (we’ve been there), so it’s handy that Little Cooks Co delivers on all three counts. They’re all about teaching kids to love making and eating healthy food, delivering cooking kits to get kids baking and learning about ingredients.

Deliciously Ella

What started as a blog by founder Ella to help manage a condition through alternative diets, is now a thriving plant-based community. And we’re quite partial to a Deliciously Ella nut butter ball at the office (RIP) – but since being locked down, we’ve been on DE’s app getting vegan recipes and ordering plant-based snacks and breakfasts.

Honest Brew

In times like these, cold beers on a hot day with friends (at a social distance) are getting us through, especially when they’re from HonestBrew. They stock beers from top independent producers around the world, and they’ll deliver as quickly as the next day. Cheers to that.

Norah's Brownies London

Ironically founded not by Norah but by her mother Leah, a Type 1 Diabetic who was looking for alternative ways of getting her sugar fix. And so Norah’s Brownies was born – rich, gooey and intensely delicious, award winning and naturally free of refined sugar, dairy and gluten. Even better when delivered to your door.

Union Coffee Roasters

Nothing like a roast to start the day. We’re talking coffee (although a cheeky leftover nut roast for brekky never hurt anyone). East London’s Union Coffee Roasters are one of our favourites, marrying high quality speciality coffee with responsible sourcing. Which is what we like to know when we’re sipping on that morning brew.

Local Sustainable Food Shops

There’s nothing more idealistic than strolling down a tree-lined street in your neighbourhood, popping into your local deli and being greeted by the owner (who knows you by name, of course). While in a previous life it might have felt easier to nip to your local supermarket for a bunch of bananas or a bottle of wine, these days those queues are making us think twice about how convenient it really is. Have you checked out your local off-licence or convenience store? It’s likely that you’ll find a wealth of local sustainable food shops in your area that sell fresh vegetables (which you can put straight in your tote bag, rather than grabbing plastic tubs or individually wrapped oranges), plant-based products and way more tins of beans than Tesco. And you might find that a few have even launched local grocery delivery services to help vulnerable adult. Our advice? Skip the queues at supermarkets and make your way to your local greengrocers, convenience store or deli, make friends with the owners, and feel great about getting local produce, shopping sustainably,  supporting local businesses and feeling known in your community.

Grow Your Own Vegetables + Herbs

The eco-warrior in us (hey, Alan!) longs to live on acres of land, build our own house and grow vegetables in our wild and wonderful allotment. Sadly London life doesn’t necessarily allow for that grower’s paradise. It’s probably more a herb ‘garden’ in a planter on a kitchen windowsill that hasn’t been watered for a few days, coriander leaves looking limp and the mint shrivelled and dry to a crisp. We’ve all been there. There are ways of getting your homegrown game back up, even if you live in a studio flat with only one window. We’re all for growing your own vegetables, fruit and herbs because it’s a sustainability win, so we’ve put together a list of great online resources that will help your green fingers flourish. Whether that’s sending you tomato seeds and soil, or giving you tips on how to keep everything alive – because it’s not just your houseplants that need all the love and attention during this time.

How to choose your veg to grow with Jessie

It can be daunting to choose what you’re going to grow, because once those seeds are planted, there’s no changing your mind. This is especially important when you’re in London and every inch of outdoor space is precious, and it’s not that simple. We all love avocado, so it sounds like a no brainer considering how expensive they are from the shop. But did you know it can take anywhere from five to thirteen years for your tree to grow its first avo?! Not worth it in our books.

So – we spoke to Jessie (aka  @plot_37) who knows all about growing fruit and vegetables in London. Have a read and find out what she recommends investing your time and love into!

How to grow your own vegetables – a Beginner’s Guide by Rosie

So you want to start growing your own veg, but the responsibility of looking after a living thing is triggering memories of the Tamagotchi graveyard in your parents’ attic. We get it. Sometimes no matter how much you love something, you don’t always know how to look after it (too deep?). So many Tamagotchis met an early fate from being overfed or having the lights left on when they went to sleep and you don’t want your plants to follow suit.

But fear not – we’ve got some secrets to share that should give you the skills and confidence to start growing your own fruit and vegetables regardless of how many indoor plants or 90s toys you might have killed in the past…

We spoke to Rosie from @rosiesallotment to get her top tips for those just starting to grow their own veg, our fave being to have fun with it and remember to enjoy the process. And whilst plants wont bleep to tell you they’re hungry, after a while you’ll pick up the signs of over/under watering and be eating tomatoes straight off the vine.

How to grow your own herbs with @inatinygarden

Herbs are delicious. Parsley makes every dish better and mint is the ultimate allrounder (what else can you make cocktails, teas, fruit salads and salad salads with?!). A lot of them also happen to be very happy with living indoors, so you don’t have to have an outside space to experience the joys of freshly snipped basil. We caught up with Kathryn aka @inatinygarden to get some tips on how to grow your own herb garden so you don’t have to keep paying a quid for those tiny, tiny bags…

“Before I had the tiny outdoor garden I grew a variety of herbs in front of a south facing window. One of the best herbs to grow indoors is basil and it’s also easy to start from seed!