CSA

[orthodoc]

We have a CSA program in smalltown that I bought a share in a couple of years ago. For a flat fee of roughly $300-400 you get a weekly box or bag of seasonal produce spanning May - Oct. Well-established programs will have produce available early via cold frames, greenhouses etc. They also may ask you for a list of things you really don't want. With other programs you get what they send, no choices. Some programs bring the boxes or bags in to a designated pick-up point in town; some have doorstep delivery.

It may be a little frustrating if you have a new CSA program locally and quantities aren't quite what you expect. sometimes it takes them a season or two to adjust exactly how much they need to produce to meet demand. But you get fresh local usually organically grown produce that hasn't been harvested by what is essentially slave labor, and that hasn't required tons of petrochemicals to store and truck it thousands of miles, you support your local small farmers, and you get to see what's really seasonal. Many people have no idea that asparagus is a spring-only vegetable, or that grapes, tomatoes, and cucumbers are mid to late summer. With 365-day availability of anything we want, we lose the sense of progression of the seasons and nothing is really special when we don't have to wait for it.

Anyway ... CSA programs are worth your support, even if your local one is starting on a small scale.