VEGETABLE CSA

 

Our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program will be evolving in 2016.  We are transitioning to a new larger farm with 150 acres of land under lease in the Brunner Family Forest Preserve.  We have partnered with experienced organic vegetable grower Bob Vierow to plant and manage our vegetable and herb operations at the new farm.  He will be providing us with enough vegetables to support 50 CSA customers from our farm, as well as to provide vegetables for us to sell in the farm store. 

 

The full season vegetable CSA program runs for 20 weeks, from mid-June through late December. A full vegetable share contains enough food to fill a grocery bag 2/3 full.  The cost for a full annual share is $645 if paid before March 1st, $660 if paid after March 1st.  We are also offering a half share, which is the same  amount of vegetables but the boxes will be picked up every other week (10 weekly pickups).  The cost for the half share is $380 if paid before March 1st, and $395 if paid after. 


Farming Practices
All of the vegetables and fruits grown on for our CSA are raised organically, without synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, using farming practices that conserve soil and water and preserve the health of surrounding ecosystems.


Our Shared Commitments
We promise to do our best to provide you with a diverse and bountiful share each week. In exchange, by joining our CSA, you agree to share the risks of farming with us and other members. While we do all that we can to withstand weather extremes, pests, and crop disease, sometimes we experience low yields or crop failure. In the event of crop failure, our CSA takes priority over other markets. We fill our CSA shares with the week’s harvest, and may supplement our vegetables with locally-grown buy-ins. If a large portion of crops fail, we may reduce the share size or cancel deliveries in some weeks.

 

A full vegetable share includes 7-10 items per week, and contains enough food to fill your average grocery bag 2/3 full. This amounts to plenty of food for a vegetable-loving couple or small family.

 

Eating in Season
One of the major benefits of joining a CSA program is the opportunity to eat what is in season! The following lists provide an idea of the types of vegetables you will see in an average share:


June – July - Lettuce, arugula, spinach, baby kales, chard and collards, mustard greens, bok choi, radishes, turnips, peas, green onions, and more.


July-September - Beets, carrots, turnips, peas, beans, summer squash, green onions, cucumbers, kale, chard, collards, corn, herbs, mixed greens, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, potatoes, mustard greens, cabbage, onions, and more.


September – October - Beets, carrots, turnips, rutabagas, chard, kale, collards, winter squash, potatoes, onions, leeks, cabbage, bok choi, lettuce, mustard greens, arugula, herbs, green onions, radishes, kohlrabi and more.


Food Safety
We take food safety seriously. We follow Good Agricultural Practices for the safe production, harvest, and handling of fresh vegetables and fruts.  We also supply food safety information and food storage instructions to our members at the start of each season and in each monthly newsletter. We encourage our members to wash all produce before eating and to refrigerate appropriate produce as soon as possible after pick-up.