Several people asked me to diary on CSA’s in a welcome wagon thread. As a disclaimer, let me state that I am not a farmer, but merely an enthusiastic member, and convert to the world of CSA. The concept of a CSA is quite simple- members pay a farmer in advance for a share of all the crops (s)he grows in a year. Each week, members travel to the farm and collect a share of the week’s harvest. In this way, small farmers are encouraged to experiment with interesting crops, grow organic veggies, and keep our vital farmlands in production. Members share in the risks and benefits inherent in farming- the farmer is guaranteed an income- in good years members get lots of produce, in bad years members share in the farmer’s losses. More after the break…
So… it seems a simple economic/agricultural system, why do people become converts to this form of farming?
Maybe it is the search for community- you go to the farm in the same 3-4 hour block of time each week. While there you run into the same people each time- people that share your desire to feed your family well, protect the environment, and build community. I know the farmer who grows my food, my kids play with his kids- how many Americans can say that?
Maybe it is the connection with the land- unlike the people that shop at supermarkets I know the fields where my food is growing. Most farms require a 6-12 hour per year work commitment- members get out in the fields, dig in the soil, plant vegetables, harvest crops, and learn about their food. Many of us work extra hours when we can. Some veggies (peas, beans, cherry tomatoes) are pick your own. I love walking with my kids into the fields to pick their beans (and they love eating the beans they pick!)
Maybe it is the challenge- belonging to a CSA means redefining your eating habits- you have to learn to eat with the seasons. Greens this week, white turnips and snap peas next week. You have to learn to design your menu around veggies at the peak of ripeness in your area. You also have to learn to preserve veggies to enjoy later (I still have one can of last year’s tomatoes and a few pesto cubes).
Maybe it is just the food- abundant, top quality, organically grown and diverse. When I buy a head of lettuce at the supermarket it was picked 10 days ago in California or last week in Florida. When I get lettuce at the farm, it was picked that morning (or afternoon). It is like having my own garden without the commitment and with much greater diversity.
So, how can you get in on the action?
To learn more about CSA’s and their history, and to find a farm near you visit
http://www.csacenter.org/
http://www.biodynamics.com/csa.html.
To learn about a couple of great farms in MA visit
http://www.heirloomharvestcsa.com
http://stearnsfarmcsa.org/
I am curious, how many in the frog pond belong to CSA’s?
What a wonderfuly simple concept! My husband and I have been toying with the idea of starting an organic farm. CSA is certainly an attractive alternative. Driving around the rural Pennsylvania countryside, there are so many farms that are no longer functioning, it’s sad. Almost gone are the small herds of cows that used to dot the hillsides. When the truth about genetic crops is finally known, it will be up to the small farmer with his(her) heritage seeds to save the day. Thanks for writing this diary, it’s great food for thought.
Good luck with the farm if you decide to try it- farming is so important and we in the northeast are losing all of our prime farmlands. Your comment about the seeds made me think of the novel I am now reading, if you are looking for a great summer read try about human foibles and agriculture (and heritage seeds and biotechnology) try All Over Creation by Ruth Ozeki.
What a great idea mcinma! I had never heard of it. I have a one acre lot that I don’t do anything with. I’ve been trying to figure out how I could turn it into a community garden type thing. Maybe some of these people will have an idea.
Another food related project that I wish people would take more interest in is restrictions that require school lunch programs to purchase from local farmers. I know they do that in No Cal, but here in So Cal I can’t get anyone interested. It would be nice if there was a group of us pushing the food ajenda.
It is really tough to get instituional buyers, like schools, to support local growers. I tried to get something going when I was on our school board, and the lunch director looked at me as if I was mad. I mean, would it really kill them to buy a thousand bushels of local apples in the fall?
Did you see Supersize Me? I think part of the problem is that people who can actually cook (as opposed to open a can) cost money.
Besides veggies, many CSA farmers also raise animals. For several years now, we have bought a lamb and half a pig. They are processed at a locally-owned locker, and we store the meat in a deep freezer. It’s a little extra work, but we are absolutely sure that our meat doesn’t have any hormones or anti-biotics.
I had a steer until about a month ago. Now he’s in my Dad’s/Brothers’ freezers because I just can bring myself to serve and eat him. I have to tell you, raising farm animals, is, in my opinion, the fast track to vegetarianism.
People don’t realize how affectionate cattle are…that they play…that they can distinguish between people…that they lke thier heads scratched.
Old time farmers have no patience with such an attitude… but I’m with you all the way. Of course animals have personalities and intelligence.
I know. My neighbors just say “the first one is hard.” One of my neighbors comes from a family of seven all brothers except for her. They raised sheep and she always had a problem when they harvested the lambs.
She said at often at dinner her brothers would torment her by saying things like “ple ee ee se, pa aa aa ss, the sa aa aalt.
We get apples from a local organic orchard. They deliver shares to the CSA where we pick up.
Many CSA’s also deliver to their subscriber’s door steps in Northern Virginia. The community aspect comes with Family Days 3-4 times during the growing season where all members show up for a feast and festivities.
As I have noted numerous times on this blog, this is exactly what my husband and I plan to do when we get our farm up and running. There is one local CSA that delivers to Lynchburg but they are limited to 300 members. So, there’s room for us, for sure. Most of the organic growers around here just come in to one of the 3 farmers’ markets in the area on Saturdays and sell out their week’s harvest.
This location is unique in that many of these farms are only a 15 minute drive away — I’ve gotten into the habit of driving out to my egg producer every other week and picking up a couple dozen. It’s incredibly charming to actually see the chickens who have laid your eggs milling around your feet.
The organic meat grower is an hour away so I generally meet him on Saturday mornings at the Community Market and he has my order already bagged up and sitting in the freezer.
Another great link is http://www.localharvest.org where you can search for local providers in your area.
Wow, I’m new here so I didn’t know you were considering a CSA. Best of luck with it, I really admire people that have the dedication and stamina to farm!
about the dedication and stamina. We’re going to take it in stages. Starting with a deep bed garden and a few chickens. Then, we’ll add some crops and pasture a milk cow to bring ourselves close to self-sufficiency. If that all works out, we’ll look for a couple of young partners to assist us in expanding the gardens into a market-sized operation. We’re both over fifty so if we can’t get young helpers we probably won’t try to do more than provide for ourselves and a circle of friends. Fortunately, Lynchburg has four colleges so we figure “Free room and board for chores” might attract some interest.
I’ll be reporting our progress toward our goal here at the BooT as we move forward. Right now, we’re waiting for our house in the Atlanta suburbs to sell…
by turning to organic gardening.
What happened was that Cuban agriculture was totally modern–and totally dependent on oil for pesticides and fertilizer, and to run farm machinery. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, both their market for sugar and their supply of oil went away. They had to learn to grow food without any of the “modern” conveniences. They returned to draft animals and human attention and labor. The trickiest part was dealing with pests, but they devoted common effort to information sharing and developing pest-predators.
Our turn will come. The crisis in oil–we are peaking production right now–will come ahead of schedule. We should be ready.