Bumper asparagus season on the horizon
Asparagus season is here, with the seasonal favourite set to land in kitchens across New Zealand this month.
In 2021, Simms co-founded Wonky Box with his partner Katie Jackson in response to the significant amounts of food waste faced by local growers as the result of supermarket cosmetic standards.
Early on, the couple would visit growers in the outskirts of Wellington, pick up produce that was unwanted by supermarkets, and distribute it in their renovated camper van.
From there, the company has grown exponentially, rescuing about 4.3 million kg of fresh produce from being wasted. Last year, the company launched a fruit-only box, and a subsequent Wonky Pantry selection was launched in November.
In the past year, from 1 March 2024 to 28 February 2025, the company has had what it calls an oversubscribed waitlist, with demand almost tripling.
The company says some of the highest demand for its subscription boxes come from key produce-growing regions like Central Otago, Canterbury, and the surrounding areas of Tauranga.
This month, in response to high demand, the service opens to rural households from Northland to Southland along the RD1 postal route.
That means they will be able to experience the Wonky Box fruit and vegetable boxes, along with the Wonky Pantry selection, delivered to their door.
Simms says that for many in New Zealand’s rural areas the variety of stores and therefore the variety of fruit and vegetable isn’t necessarily there.
“Compared to the more metropolitan areas… in regional areas, they don’t have as many options,” he told Rural News.
Simms grew up in Whitemans Valley, a rural suburb in Upper Hutt, and says that it’s important for all New Zealand to have ready access to fresh produce regardless of their postcode.
“From experience if I’m going to be somewhat selfish with it, from living rural in my upbringing… I had to travel about 20-odd minutes if I wanted to get to the nearest store.
“Accessibility to fresh produce, I think, should be a fair right for anyone whether they live slightly further away or more localised in metropolitan cities,” Simms says.
“I think it’s everyone’s right to be able to eat healthy and eat fresh, so accessibility is a huge driver for us,” he says. “It’s something we’re quite passionate about.”
Subscriptions to Wonky Box are available via their website www. wonkybox.co.nz with boxes starting from $23.00. Delivery fees range from $11.80 to $13.90 for rural areas.
