About spud!
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A spud! story
 The idea for spud! originally came to me when I was working as a sustainability business consultant, making a business case for companies to improve their social and environmental performance. While I enjoyed the work, I wanted to do more than advise other people, I wanted to create a company that would integrate social and environmental values in its everyday business.
That day came in March 1998, when spud! opened the doors of its small warehouse in the downtown eastside of Vancouver, B.C., and made its first 9 deliveries (and we thought the day would never end!). While spud! was a much more difficult business to run than I ever imagined possible, it was everything I hoped for from a sustainability perspective:
We protect the environment by buying local, organic, minimally packaged and eco-friendly products;
We build community by creating direct connections between our food suppliers and customers;
We reduce the impacts of climate change by delivering groceries to each neighbourhood on a set route once a week;
We educate our customers about important food issues through our weekly newsletter;
We give back by supporting local charities and donating leftover food to food outreach groups.
Today, we're the largest organic food delivery company in North America (although still 'small potatoes' compared to most grocery store chains!) serving more than 19,000 customers and proving that good ethics, healthy foods, eco-friendly practices, and a commitment to local communities are essential ingredients to a modern recipe for success.
Each and everyday, our talented, dedicated team sets out to improve our service to you with fresh new products, more weekly specials and other innovative conveniences. Moreover, we all sincerely believe that we can change the world - one grocery order at a time.
I can't imagine any other work I'd rather do, today and tomorrow.
David Van Seters
President and CEO
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A spud! timeline
Mar 98
1st delivery completed in Vancouver, B.C.
Mar 00
4 organic delivery firms added over 2 years.
Feb 01
Expansion to new warehouse with double the space.
May 02
2 more organic delivery firms added.
Jun 02
spud! is the largest organic delivery service in Canada.
Oct 02
Ethics in Action award for environmental and social leadership (small business).
Jan 03
2nd second location opens on Vancouver Island.
May 04
1st Canadian retailer to sell Fair Trade bananas and mangoes.
Jun 05
1st Canadian retailer to purchase carbon offsets.
Sep 05
3rd location opens in Seattle.
Oct 05
4th location opens in Calgary.
Jan 06
spud! is the largest organic delivery service in North America.
Apr 08
5th and 6th locations open in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
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spud! believes
...we ought to be the most socially responsible, environmentally sound and financially viable organic delivery company in North America, while we also simplify and enrich the lives of our customers, staff, suppliers and community partners.
We define our shared values in three concepts: people, planet and profits.
For the people around us, we must:
build relationships based on meaningful dialogue;
provide honest work, fair compensation and real opportunity; and
support community food security, health and wellbeing, and economic self-reliance.
For the planet, we must:
adopt policies and practices that honour and sustain our world;
reduce our company's overall impact on the environment; and
make it easy for our customers to lighten their environmental footprint.
To earn our profits, we must:
anticipate customers' needs and meet their expectations;
operate efficiently and effectively; and
share our wealth with those who help create it.
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spud! commits to
locality
buying from local, independent suppliers wherever possible and clearly identifying those products as locally-sourced.
fairness
supporting certified fair-trade programs and buying only from growers and suppliers practicing fair labour standards.
employee well-being
providing meaningful work, competitive compensation, and other opportunities for staff to share in the success of the company (e.g. weekly bonuses, profit sharing, stock options).
access
providing employment opportunities to disadvantaged or at-risk community members, along with staff discounts and extended health benefits.
awareness
promoting informed consumer choices with fresh, meaningful information on key food and food system issues, such as labeling, nutrition, animal welfare, and so on.
respect
open and transparent review of our service and products, honouring all commitments and guarantees, and resolving any dispute quickly and fairly.
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