Friday, November 6, 2009

Azure Standard

I have mentioned Azure Standard in previous blogs, and thought it might be a good idea to elaborate on how to order from Azure.

Azure Standard, is a food distribution company located in Dufur, Oregon. They specialize in natural, organic, earth-friendly foods and products. They deliver directly to customers, buying clubs and retailers by semi truck and UPS.

You can order pretty much anything from Azure; produce, dairy, nuts, bread, dried fruits, flour, etc. They carry a lot of the brands you will find at Whole Foods or New Seasons. If you currently shop at WinCo or Safeway you won't see much of a savings shopping at Azure, but you will get a better quality product. If you currently shop at Whole Foods or New Seasons you will save some money, especially if you buy cases. Products periodically do go on sale. A new sales catalog comes out every two months.

You can order from Azure at anytime. They will ship non-perishable items via UPS. If you'd like to order perishable or frozen items, or not pay for shipping you can order for delivery (or drop). The drop point must have a minimum group order of $550. Paula Clark and I run a drop out of Camas Friends Church in downtown Camas, on the C-1 and D-3 routes. We have a large group and meet our minimum for every order. To join the Azure drop you will need to:
  1. Create an account with Azure at http://www.azurestandard.com/. They will mail you a schedule of deliveries (our deliveries for C-1 and D-3 come in one day earlier than the schedule states).
  2. Send an email to minda@eatwellbewell.net and request to be added to the azure list. I send out email reminders a few days before the order is due and another one with the time of delivery. 
  3. Place your order on Azure, using drop point number 519577. At the checkout you will pay for your order using a credit/debit card or COD. 
  4. Watch your emails the day of delivery, as I'll be emailing those that ordered the delivery time. The driver calls me approximately 2 hours before he will arrive. Currently both of our drops are in the evening.
  5. Show up at Camas Friends Church, 1004 NE 4th Avenue, Camas 98607, on time to help unload the truck and take your order home.
A few things to be aware of:
  • Once your invoice is pulled at the warehouse you can view it online (under your name on the left side of the website) and see what items actually shipped (items that are out of stock will have a zero in the total column).
  • Azure does not track backorders. If you want to order an item that didn't ship, you'll have to put it on your next order. 
  • Every now and then you may get charged for something you did not receive. In that case you need to call Azure and they will credit your account. Not your credit card, but your azure account.
  • Your non-perishable and refrigerator items come in a box labeled with your name. The frozen items will come in a box containing all frozen items from our order. So if you have frozen please don't leave until the frozen box(es) have been unpacked. 
  • If you would like to order but cannot be here for delivery, please arrange with someone to pick up your order. 
  • If you'd like to share a case, please feel free to send an email asking if anyone would like to share.
  • If your individual order is less than $50 you will be charged a $5 handling fee.

3 comments:

  1. Can you give me some examples of how you use Azure?
    1) do you order every week from them? (do you have to order every week?)
    2) do you order your fruits & veggies from them?
    3) what are some examples of things you like to order from Azure vs. other places?
    4) Do you still go to the grocery store?

    I received their catalog & pricing pamphlet - i didnt know where to begin so I would love to hear how you use them.

    Thank you!

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  2. Better late than never!
    1) you do not have to order every week. For the drop, the maximum you can order is every other week. I order almost every time, but you can order whenever you need to.
    2) I do order some produce, but alot of my produce comes from my CSA or the Farmer's Market.
    3) I like to order nuts, dried fruits, grains and dairy from Azure. I order meats from Thundering Hooves, and buy some things from Whole Foods and Trader Joe's
    4) so yes I still go to a grocery store - there are certain things New Seasons or Whole Foods have that Azure does not.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Minda!
    Thanks for sharing the good word about Azure Standard! My husband, Joe, is the Azure driver to the M-1 and M-2 routes. I have started a facebook page and blog for Azure and would love to have you join us in the conversation and recipe sharing!
    www.facebook.com/azurestandard
    www.azurestandard.blogspot.com
    If there is ever anything I can do for you, please just let me know.

    ReplyDelete