Choosing a CSA program

Hi all,

Happy new year to everyone! Now that the holidays are over, we're really starting to focus on the coming growing season - ordering seeds, getting ready to receive 200 new chicks, and seeking out good deals on used farm equipment. We've been eating a lot of root vegetables and pumpkins in the past month, and this morning I pulled a renegade kohlrabi head out from our crisper - slightly slimy on the outside but crunchy and delicious once it got peeled. That sucker must have been three months old!

January is also the time that people start thinking about joining CSA programs. I've had several conversations with friends and family recently about this topic. Some people are super enthusiastic about being CSA members - they like being exposed to new vegetables, enjoy the challenge of cooking with new ingredients and feel that it simplified menu planning and shopping to be presented with a pre-selected bag of food every week. Other people aren't thrilled with CSA membership - they prefer to receive vegetables that are familiar to their families and individual cooking styles, or find the weekly schedule too inflexible. Usually, people were more excited about being a member of a CSA if they had the time and inclination to try new recipes and if they already cooked most of their meals at home.

The price of joining a CSA program represents a substantial part of a household food budget, and is usually a one-time expenditure at the beginning of the season (look around, however - there are some organizations, like Growing Power in Milwaukee, that allow you to purchase weekly baskets rather than a season-long subscription). While CSA members do generally receive more for their dollar than they would if they were buying each item separately at market, this is only really a savings if you end up using all the vegetables you receive. A savvy CSA member can make a summer of CSA shares last longer by storing root vegetables and canning or freezing what does not get eaten when fresh. However, smaller households or newcomers to the CSA scene might want to find a farm that offers half shares (smaller bags or a bag every other week), or go in with another family, in order to help match what you buy with what you will actually use.

My mom cut the following article out from the Tribune last week, and I thought it was a really thoughtful take on some of the considerations that one should take in to account before signing up for a CSA program:

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-12-29/features/sc-food-1224-frugalista-qa-20101229_1_csa-farms-offer-local-farm

CSA programs are an important piece of the sustainable agriculture movement, but they are by no means the only piece - farmers markets and grocery stores or food coops that sell foods from local farms are also a great option, as is community gardening or container gardening, for people who want to produce some of their own vegetables. As we work towards improving our farm, one thing that we're always thinking about is how best to make produce available to the widest possible range of people. Our hope is that, eventually, everyone with a desire to eat local and organic will be able to find ways to do so.