At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the coastal version of tumbleweeds blew through the empty streets of the Coastside as those who were able sheltered in place, and local shop shelves were practically barren. Most remember the empty aisles where toilet paper and cleaning supplies used to be, but another anomaly of the early days of the pandemic was a shortage of fresh produce.
Locals Haley and Jake Boyajian were quick to notice the empty shelves and decided to take action, creating a fresh produce delivery box service for the community. That service has grown into Fresh Generation Foods.
“At the beginning of the pandemic, people were really scared,” said Haley Boyajian. “Nobody wanted to go out and go grocery shopping, (and) restaurants were closed. Our community was kind of shut down and so people were really excited to have a way that they could still get fresh produce delivered to their door.
“It was cool for us to connect with the community and to hear about the trials and tribulations that different people were going through,” she said.
At the time, Haley Boyajian was studying agricultural communication at California Polytechnic State University, and Jake Boyajian was studying business administration at Chico State University. Their dad and grandfather had been in the produce industry since the 1940s, and both wanted to follow in the family footsteps.
“My brother and I always knew that was something we wanted to do,” she said. “We’ve always been really fascinated with the food structure of our community, and connecting people in our community to high quality foods.
“(Before the pandemic) we were kind of trying to figure out how we could use our and our dad's knowledge of the produce industry to kind of find our own path,” Boyajian said.
At first, the Boyajians didn’t expect it would turn into a small business. They just saw a way they could help the community with their resources, and started making produce delivery boxes.
“People loved it,” said Haley Boyajian. “They were ecstatic when we first started because they were able to have this reliable delivery to their door, when it was hard to find in stores.
“We just fell in love with what we were doing, so we decided to make a business out of it and help out and keep providing produce to people after the pandemic,” she said.
Fresh Generations Foods specializes in high quality produce. Bobby Boyajian, the entrepreneurs’ dad, has been working in the produce business since he was 15 years old, and today owns and operates a 15,000-square-foot warehouse where fresh fruits and vegetables are delivered daily through the partnerships with growers he has developed in the last 50 years.
Every week Haley and Jake Boyajian sit down with their dad after he’s made his calls to the vendors and growers he works with, and curate a box for the week. Fresh Generation Foods offers three boxes, the original produce box, which will feed a family of four, a two-person box, and an all-organic option. Next, they are getting ready to roll out a one-person box.
“It’s been such a blessing to be able to do what my dad did,” said Boyajian. “He’s worked his entire life to gain this knowledge and these connections with growers, and for him to be able to pass that knowledge on to us, and for my brother and me to be able to do something with that knowledge has been really amazing.”
Each week the produce changes to reflect the best prices and quality.
Haley Boyajian says that Fresh Generation Foods differs from other subscription produce boxes because it offers customization and does not require a subscription. It also advertises a more streamlined service. The produce is only touched three times; when it’s picked, when it’s packed and when it’s placed in a customer’s box.
Boyajian said that, with grocery delivery services like Instacart, the shoppers don’t always know how to pick out the best produce.
“We take pride in that we hand (select) everything we put in the box,” she said. “As we’re packing the boxes, we inspect everything and make sure everything is good.”
Fresh Generation Foods works with local farms when they can, but because the Coastside is limited as to the kind of crops that are grown locally during a season, they also use other Bay Area resources. It has also started offering grocery items as well. Those are exclusively locally sourced.
“We have so many cool local artisans on the coast, so we’ve really been able to tap into the local community even more,” said Boyajian. “We have so much at our fingertips.”
Grocery items include dog treats, local jams and jellies, handmade bread, local bagels and more.
“My brother and I have really learned a lot about not only the produce industry since we started, but also about working with each other,” said Boyajian. “There are things I’m good at, and things he’s good at, and we’ve just been able to delegate really well … It’s not always perfect, it’s family. He’s my little brother. It’s not sunshine and rainbows all the time, but we have a lot of fun and we’ve learned a lot.”
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