Community Supported Agriculture

Community Supported Agriculture is a direct relationship between Farmer and Eater. You join a CSA by purchasing a "share" at a fixed cost at the beginnning of the season. As a shareholder, you then receive an assortment of produce grown and freshly harvested by your friendly local farmer. By paying up front at the start of the season, you are supporting a local farm by guaranteeing a market for the produce, and by providing income to purchase seeds, tools, and equipment for that season.

In exchange, you receive a seasonal variety of beautiful, delicious, lovingly grown vegetables. You reap the rewards of a bountiful harvest, but you also assume the risks of possible crop damage caused by good old Nature. The CSA relationship is a friendly and personally gratifying way to buy vegetables, and one that connects you with the people and the land that grow your food.

Farming is a risky business, and from seed to shareholder, any number of things can get in the way of an abundant harvest: deer, disease, insects, rabbits, drought, weather. When you join a CSA, you assume these natural risks alongside the farmers and the other shareholders, so that a crop loss is shared as much as a bumper crop.

Therefore, when you join a CSA there is less certainty than when you shop at the grocery store, but there are also many pleasant surprises: variety, abundance, introductions to new and different vegetables, connection to the place where your food is grown. When you join a CSA, you are playing an active role in supporting local agriculture, preserving open space and building community.

We encourage shareholders to visit the farm to experience the changing of the seasons and enjoy the open space and stunning views. We welcome volunteer participation as well; working alongside the farmers and interns builds connections between your family and our farm and allows you to have a hand in growing your own food!

Six Good Reasons to Join a CSA (adapted from www.foodroutes.org)

1. Locally-grown foods are fresher and higher in nutrients, often reaching you within 24 hours of harvest, whereas produce shipped from out of state may be up to a week old and has often suffered from severe nutrient loss.

2. Buying locally lets you connect directly with your food producer: you can ask whether the farmers use safe farming practices, what they spray on their crops, and what they feed to their animals.

3. By supporting local agriculture, you help to protect your region's farmland from urban sprawl and development. Protection of local farmland means protection of open spaces, natural ecosystems, and biodiversity.

4. Buying local food helps to reduce dependence on foreign oil needed to ship food thousands of miles, thus cutting back on greenhouse gas emissions.

5. CSA farms provide places for community members to meet, socialize, and discuss issues, bringing together individuals who share concerns about the future, fostering community growth and cooperation towards common goals.

6. Purchasing food that was grown and harvested locally keeps your money circulating within your community, keeping wealth in your region and strengthening the local economy.