A COUPLE who were sick of buying tasteless fruit and veg have started a business delivering the freshest produce they can find in Northumberland and Tyneside.

The Vegbox Company was the brainchild of joiner David Roberts and his teacher wife Laura, after they decided to start buying their own produce straight from the fruit and veg market.

David said: “We were tired of going to supermarkets and finding that the fruit and vegetables we bought had no taste and then started to go off within days.

“We started buying our own veg from the early Saturday markets straight from the producers and the difference was amazing. We thought, maybe other people would like that too.”

The couple, who are based in Bedlington, now have a round of more than 40 homes across Wansbeck, North Tyneside and Jesmond to which they deliver fresh salad bags, fruit bags and fruit and veg boxes.

The business supplies seasonal produce plus free-range eggs and local Northern Highlights food such as chutneys, cakes and biscuits.

There is also plans for a ‘buddy’ system, where deliveries are made to volunteers who then distribute the packages to their neighbours. In return, they will be awarded loyalty points that can be swapped for food.

The Roberts worked with the Go Wansbeck enterprise team to launch the business, which provided advice on marketing, planning, advertising and finance.

Business coach, Graeme Trotter, said: “This is a great business idea which has a lot of growth potential. We’re really expecting their company to take root.

“Their plan is to triple their business client base over the next year and we’ll do everything we can to support them in that.”