CSA, Community Supported Agriculture is an AMAZING
invention.
I wish that someone had told me what a CSA box was years
ago, since I wasn't privy to this amazing information for most of my life I am
making it a point to share this fabulous idea with everyone I know. Community
Supported Agriculture (or CSA) is a way for consumers to buy local, seasonal
food directly from the farmers growing it.
Instead of going to the grocery store and buying food that has been
shipped from who knows where, and is who knows how old, fruits and veggies (and
sometimes other natural farm products) are picked and then made available to you.
It is an amazing opportunity for consumers to get fresh food
and meet the people who grow it. The farmers have an opportunity to meet the
people buying their products and they earn money that will help support the
farm.
Our family is lucky enough to live in an area that offers
multiple CSA programs. We have had the opportunity to try out some amazing
programs, we tried one that delivered a box of fresh fruits and veggies to our
door every other week, one that had a pick up right at the farm, and our
current favorite from Feeding Crain Farms offers buyers the chance to not only
get fresh fruits and veggies but custom made products such as marinara, bbq, jellies
and jams, and 100% organic household cleaning products!
It is amazing, my house is always full of fresh produce! I
have the ability to request more or less of different items and I know that it
is totally organic, completely fresh, and it tastes great!
So here is what I want you to do:
Visit http://www.localharvest.org/csa/ look for the map of the USA that is covered
in green-those are the farms that offer CSA (there are a lot of them!) type in
your zip code and see what is available in your neighborhood.
Look at your grocery bill, do the math and see how much you
spend on produce. Wouldn’t you rather be spending that money on FRESH produce?
Yeah I think you do! Visit the websites of the CSA’s in your neighborhood and
see how much they charge-I bet it is less than you are spending monthly at the
store.
Sign up! Even if you only do it for a month it is a great
opportunity for your family to try produce straight from the farm. Many of the
CSA farms will even allow you to visit to see where your food is coming
from. We have our own garden year round
so we request food that we can’t get at home, we also only do it in the spring
and summer, the great thing is you can adjust your box to your family’s needs!
Last but not least, enjoy!
-Amanda
If you live in the local Sacramento area check out some of
our families favorite CSA programs:
Soil Born Farms
