What is CSA? What does it mean to become a member of a CSA? How does a CSA share work? These are all questions that often come up whenever we mention those three letters. Maybe we can help answer some of these questions right here.
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a way for you to create a direct relationship with the farm and to secure a weekly supply of fresh produce for the duration of the growing season. Members of a CSA Farm Share Program purchase their food “share” from the farmer in winter or spring, and receive a supply of freshly picked vegetables and fruits every week from June to October.
There are many positive benefits to joining a CSA share program in addition to the weekly fresh produce you receive. A CSA member knows how and where their produce is grown, and they can interact directly with the grower of that food on a weekly basis. There is an opportunity to share in the experience of local agriculture directly, and it also provides a direct and open forum for ideas and suggestions. Members are provided information and recipes related to the weeks share, and are encouraged to taste and experience all the different vegetables and the many ways to prepare them.
As a member of a CSA program your participation also brings many benefits directly to the farmers. Creating an upfront source of revenue before the coming season allows for planning with efficiency and creativity and allows them to focus on farming. With this opportunity comes the ability to constantly improve growing techniques and to continually become better farmers.
CSA programs are re-establishing the connection between the food we eat and the farmers who grow it. Members of Community Supported Agriculture programs are contributing to the return to local agriculture at its most fundamental level…at home, in their own communities. Our CSA is also helping us at Lucky Field Organics achieve our main mission as a farm: to provide food for local people, grown by local people.