The Finest Fruit Right To Your Door (Win!)

Mangos and cherries and lychees … oh my! If you’re in southern Ontario, Fruter delivers the freshest, most beautiful and, in some cases, rarest produce right to your door, often on the next day. We chatted with co-founder Steven Yoannou to learn more about this unique and fruity service. —Noa Nichol

When and why did you launch Fruter? What niche were/are you aiming to fill?

We started Fruter as a means for customers to easily find tree-ripe fresh fruits, and hard to find fruits. A “Fruter” in South America is someone you buy your fruit from. In Canada we have amazing delis, butcher shops and bakeries, but finding a consistent source for quality fruit, or a “Fruter,” doesn’t exist in every neighbourhood. Our niche is to provide only top quality fruits and hard to find fruits for people who appreciate fruit quality or are looking to try something new. Also someone who just wants a fridge or counter full of fruit all the time.

What products do you currently offer, and what makes them unique?

We currently offer fruits from South America, Southeast Asia, Oceania, the United States and Canada. Our backbone is tropical fruit that is available 12 months of the year like: avocado, papaya, granadilla, palmer mangoes and berries. We then add seasonal and rare fruits as they come into season, like: milk fruit, bayberries, pitahaya, custard apple, lychee, tayberries, golden raspberries, pawpaw, over a dozen mango varieties, and so much more.

How does “local” play into your brand/offerings? Seasonality? Sustainability?

We work with local farms 12 months of the year to supply restaurants with edible flowers and speciality vegetables. But we mainly work with local farms between June-October when local fruits are in season. During this time we work with about 10 local farms that operate under sustainable and biodiverse guidelines.

As a pro, please tell us: why does fruit at the grocery store often not smell or taste like much?

I would say this isn’t always the case and is certainly more of a store-to-store basis. But more often than not fruit and vegetables that you find in bigger grocery chains travel to Canada on a sea container. This process takes around 2-3 weeks to reach the store shelves after the fruit has been picked and packed. In order for the fruit to survive that journey they are often picked underripe, or specific varieties are grown that can handle that journey. We on the other hand have fruit flown to us. This means we can have fruit fully tree-ripe and available on our website within 3-4 days of being picked. For local fruit we often have our fruit available online within the same day that it was picked, then delivered to you the next day. Tree-ripe means you get all the flavour, nutrition and smells of a fresh fruit. 

Tell us about your rare fruit; what have you offered that most people wouldn’t have heard of?

It really depends on where you were raised, and where you have been. But I would say some of the fruits we carry that majority of our customers haven’t heard of are: Egg Fruit, Jelly Oranges, Marian Plum, Vampire Plums, Sapote, White Nectarines, and the elusive wild fruit that is native to Ontario: The Pawpaw.

What’s in season now/for late spring/summer that you’re really excited for people to try?

Thai Lychee is at it’s absolute finest right now. But in the summer our tropical and exotic line of fruits slow down a bit. We will continue to source bayberries and Indian mangoes, but really it’s time for Ontario to shine. In the coming weeks we will have local strawberries, raspberries and gooseberries. Ontario will really kick off after Canada Day, which is when we will start seeing: golden raspberries, tayberries, black raspberries, white peaches, white nectarines, doughnut peaches, and around 10 plum varieties. 

Plans to expand to other Canadian cities/provinces?

We just launched Fruter this year, but that’s not to say an expansion isn’t on our radar. The important thing for us is being able to deliver the best quality to customers. Shipping across Canada is pretty expensive and the quality isn’t always guaranteed. So until we can figure out a more economic way to do that we will probably remain in Ontario for now. 

If you were stuck on a deserted island with just one fruit-giving tree, what would it be?

Pawpaw. But this fruit grows for about 3 weeks, so unless the deserted island is magic and I can grow it for 12 months, I would probably have to choose something more responsible. In that case I would go with mango. But preferably a Peruvian Kent or Nam Dok Mai. 

fruter.ca

Win! A $100 Fruter Mystery Fruit Box!

Congrats Lisa M. of Toronto, ON, who will receive a $100 Fruter Mystery Fruit Box! Please note: if you are the winner, you will receive a DM (direct message) in Instagram directly from @vitadaily.ca. Please be wary of fake accounts, which often use similar handles with an extra or missing letter, number or symbol. We will never ask for a payment or for your credit card number, and we will never ask you to click through a link. If you are unsure whether you have been contacted, via Instagram, by us or a fake account, email us before responding.