Anyone a member of CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)?

[Anonymous]

If so, what was your experience? How costly is it compared to just shopping at local farmers markets?

Thanks in advance for the tips!

[Anonymous]

We've done it. My general impression is that it's cheaper than shopping at a farmers market if you bought every single item they give you, but you would be unlikely to buy every single item they give you so it comes down to whether you are the kind of person who is happy to get a bunch of kale and figure out what to do with it, or whether you prefer to just buy exactly what you think you need.

Also, remember it's not hard to miss a delivery or two being away during the summer.

[Anonymous]

I pay about $90 for a pickup every two weeks from farmstofamily (they are a coop and even give you stuff from Polyface). Anyway, I get meat (this week bison and, milk, yogurt, cheese, bread, veggies and fruit. I think its cheaper than shopping at WF or a Farmer's Market and the pick up locations are convenient for me. I only have to supplement fruit (they only give you 1-2 melons for example and we go through fruit like crazy). Then the next week we shop at the grocery store. I love it.

[Anonymous]

We belong to one (Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative) and like it. We definitely struggle to use everything, and some things do go to waste, but it has cut down greatly on our spending at the grocery store. I don't really think of it as an item for item substitution, though: the fact that we have so much fresh produce to use has cut down on the amount of processed/packaged food we buy because we just don't have space in our diets now for it. We also have a chest freezer, so I make a lot of soups and freeze them or just blanch and freeze vegetables and fruits for later use. That has made a difference in the amount of waste, and all the trimmings go into our composter.

[Anonymous]

We do it and love it, but it definitely takes a creative mind. I have cooked a lot of things I definitely wouldn't have otherwise. Also note that it takes a lot of time to process and deal with all the veggies. This week we got eggs, melon, blackberries, lettuce, 2 bunches of beets, 4 bell peppers, tons of squash and tomatoes, onions, fennel, and 2 eggplants. Oh and herbs. So I made ratatouille in the slow cooker and a box of orzo and we've been eating it with salad. I'm going to make stuffed peppers soon. Not sure what to do about the beets. Maybe a slaw with one and roast the others for a salad. I've been making quiche with the beet greens, but NYT has a recipe for risotto with beat greens so that may be next.

Anyway, you get the gist. You make food you're given and sometimes you have to get creative, but it's fresh and wonderful.

[Anonymous]

PP (2201), which coop do you use? Sounds much more bountiful that the one I belonged to a few years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We belong to one (Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative) and like it. We definitely struggle to use everything, and some things do go to waste, but it has cut down greatly on our spending at the grocery store. I don't really think of it as an item for item substitution, though: the fact that we have so much fresh produce to use has cut down on the amount of processed/packaged food we buy because we just don't have space in our diets now for it. We also have a chest freezer, so I make a lot of soups and freeze them or just blanch and freeze vegetables and fruits for later use. That has made a difference in the amount of waste, and all the trimmings go into our composter.

We also belong to Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative and I love it. We get both the vegetable and fruit share and we try to only eat the fruit/vegetables we get every week instead of buying them. Some weeks I do really well with using everything, other times it's hard. I've also been making lots of soups to freeze for later. I get super excited about the start of the CSA every summer. It also makes you get creative with your cooking because you get things you won't normally buy. For instance, we got fava beans one week. Having never seen a fava bean, let alone eat one. But I made some delicious fava bean risotto out of it

[Anonymous]

We belong to Great Country Farms in Bluemont and love them. Ours is a combined veg/fruit half share and we do really well every week. This is our first year and I've been super pleased.

They also have tons of events at the farm as, as a member, you get free admission. I'm so happy we joined and the produce has just been outstanding.

[Anonymous]

We just started one with Orchard Country http://www.orchcountry.com/ They deliver to my husband's office once a week.

I wrote a post with pictures of our first delivery on my blog if your interested to see what we got

http://www.babiesdesignfood.com/2011/07/csa-farm-share-week-1-summer.html

Hope this helps!

[Anonymous]

I tried it one year, but it just wasn't for me. At the beginning of the season there was a lot of produce that I didn't care as much for (Kale and other leafy veggies for instance) or know how to cook (tried and it didn't turn out too well) and at the end of the season it wasn't my favorite either (spaghetti squash). I'm not a great cook - so most of my dislike was due to my lack of ability. For some of the produce I did like, I was disappointed at the quality (corn, for example - the kernals were very small and not juicy). I gave a lot of my produce to my neighbor who is a personal chef. Figured it was better if it didn't go to waste.

I think the program is a great idea for the right person; someone who likes/knows how to cook and also likes the kind of vegetables provided. I'd rather go to the Farmer's Market and buy exactly what I know I'll use - and the quantities I prefer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just started one with Orchard Country http://www.orchcountry.com/ They deliver to my husband's office once a week.

I wrote a post with pictures of our first delivery on my blog if your interested to see what we got

http://www.babiesdesignfood.com/2011/07/csa-farm-share-week-1-summer.html

Hope this helps!

Awesome Robin! Love the blog and the pictures of your baby. I almost participated in a CSA, but decided to try a garden. It's been so much fun with the kids (9,7, & 5) and I've had a good harvest - tomatoes, zuchinni, yellow squash, peppers, beans, pumpkins and watermelon (no fruit yet, but the plant is going crazy). I even posted a picture on facebook because I was so excited. I still go to the Farmers Market at work every Wednesday, but I spend less than $10 there.

[Anonymous]

If you are in Maryland, I highly recommend our CSA, Norman's Farm Market http://normansfarmmarket.com/ It has several pick up locations and days.

It's a little different than the traditional CSA in that they have their own farm and buy from other small family farms. Because they do that, they can offer a bigger variety of produce and can do things like offer veggies and orchard fruits. What I like most is that you don't just get a box of stuff and are stuck with two heads of cabbage. When you go to the pickup there are 3 stages - 1st stage you pick 3 of 6 items offered, these are usually bigger items like a melon, head of lettuce, 6 ears of corn, pint of cherry tomatoes etc... then in stage 2 you fill a basket with veggies that you pick out and in stage 3 you fill your basket with the fruit you want. So at each stage you get to select what you want and aren't stuck with what you don't. You're still constrained by what's available and seasonality of course and by this point in time, there's a lot of zucchini and eggplant in my fridge, but you get a little more control of what you're buying. As a plus, they get a wide variety this way, so there's white eggplant, striped, green japanese, white japanese, etc...

Last year I priced out what I was spending on produce at the store and farmer's market in a month vs. what the CSA would cost and it came out cheaper, especially for the fruit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just started one with Orchard Country http://www.orchcountry.com/ They deliver to my husband's office once a week.

I wrote a post with pictures of our first delivery on my blog if your interested to see what we got

http://www.babiesdesignfood.com/2011/07/csa-farm-share-week-1-summer.html

Hope this helps!

Awesome Robin! Love the blog and the pictures of your baby. I almost participated in a CSA, but decided to try a garden. It's been so much fun with the kids (9,7, & 5) and I've had a good harvest - tomatoes, zuchinni, yellow squash, peppers, beans, pumpkins and watermelon (no fruit yet, but the plant is going crazy). I even posted a picture on facebook because I was so excited. I still go to the Farmers Market at work every Wednesday, but I spend less than $10 there.

Thanks!! Glad you like it! Someday when I have a yard I plan to start a garden. Until then I'll have to settle for a small herb garden in my apartment window