Farm shop with online orders and pickup

Households wanting regular local food, who often prefer a weekly or biweekly box with predictable pickup times.

Sales per box or per order, with subscriptions giving steadier income. Adding goods from neighbouring producers widens the range.

• Packing and organising orders
• Basic website and social media use
• Planning harvests against orders

• Food safety and labelling rules for packed goods, so check with your public health unit and provincial regulator
• Cold storage for dairy, eggs and meat, and keeping food at safe temperatures
• Commercial general liability insurance, and product liability cover for food
• Overselling when harvests fall short, so cap orders each week
• Quebec has French-language labelling and website requirements, so check if you operate there

Estimates suggest startup costs typically around $1,000 to $6,000, depending on cold storage, packing supplies and your website. Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $800 to $4,000, depending on how many boxes you sell.

Check food safety and labelling rules for packed goods with your public health unit and provincial regulator. Also check cold storage needs, commercial and product liability insurance, and, if you operate in Quebec, French-language labelling and website requirements.

Packing and organizing orders, basic website and social media use, and planning harvests against orders. Estimates suggest at least around 8 hours a week. Cap orders each week so you don't oversell when harvests fall short.