The Slow Food USA Blog

‘Tis the season

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'Tis the season for CSAs!

"What's a CSA?" you ask.

"CSA" stands for Community Supported Agriculture, and refers to a mutually beneficial relationship between a farm and its customers in which consumers buy a membership to the farm at the beginning of the season. This is great for the farmer: rather than bringing in a lot of product and wondering how much of it will sell, the farmer has sold a certain number of shares, they have been paid for in advance and he/she must simply bring that exact amount of product to the drop off/pick up location each week. It's also great for the consumer–or "co-producer" as we like to say–because for an entire season (anywhere from 3 - 7 months) he/she has a weekly pick-up of fresh, seasonal food and a relationship with one farm. Many CSAs invite share-holders to come visit and/or come work during the high season, so there is an opportunity to learn, in the most direct sense, where your food comes from.

Curious, you wonder, "if it's still the tail end of the bleak season, how is it already time for CSAs?"

CSAs are popular, and often sell out all their shares well in advance of the beginning of the season (end of May or early June). If you begin thinking about this now you can find one near you, be in touch with the organizers, and snag yourself a share!

Convinced, and interested, you ask, "How do I find one near me?"

The best place to start is by checking out Local Harvest. They have an entire page dedicated to describing CSAs and a mapping mechanism for typing in your zip code and finding a map and list of the CSAs nearest to you.