Reader Request #3: What exactly is a share of a CSA and is it worth it?

A share in a Consumer Supported Agriculture farm is when you pay upfront to get a share of whatever the farm makes throughout the year. I own half a share, but I get a full share every other week. My CSA is actually a co-op of several local farms. In addition, they will sometimes trade with local grocers for out of region items. For example, right now is orchard fruit season, which is huge in the northwest, but we have no bananas or oranges here at all. So, some weeks, instead of getting 15 pears, we will get 6 pears and 6 oranges, which is kind of nice. I think the kids are getting a little apple and pear-ed out. They have been asking for bananas lately, so I'm glad we got some today. What I get changes from week to week depending on what is in season. Here is my haul for today:

 

What you see here is:

• 4 ears of corn
• 5 potatoes
• 2 yams
• 11 plums
• 5 bananas
• 1 bunch of kale
• 6 carrots
• 6 pears
• 4 peaches
• 6 apples
• 1 bunch of celery
• 2 tomatoes
• 4 oranges
• 2 bunches of grapes

I priced this out on Safeway.com using just general produce (not organic, which all of this is grown organically) and it came to $57.19. I paid $300 for six months of half a share (well, I'm still paying it, they are letting me pay in installments.) That comes out to about $23 per delivery. Plus, did I mention they deliver!!! The savings in the winter time is probably not as dramatic, but since we live in such a mild climate, we do get some things year round and it does end up still being substantially cheaper than the grocery store. They also deliver milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, and soy products such as tofu, but those are more costly than the store. A gallon of organic milk costs $6.50, whereas in the store it is about $5.50 or so. I do occasionally have them bring it to me in a pinch, though.

I have been using almost all of it with ease except the celery. I don't know what to do with celery besides put some cream cheese in it or throw it in some tuna salad or something. I seem to never use all the celery. But if you plan and think it through, you can use all of this up before it spoils. We eat the bananas first, and then by the end of the two week period we are left with just apples and pears, and so that is when the kids start asking for other things. They have been asking for bananas and grapes for two days now and get upset when I say, No bananas. How 'bout some apples! So today they were happy to get something different. I do not buy additional produce at the store, it is just one way we limit our spending to what we have and can afford. I may supplement in the winter if it seems to get bleak, though. Or maybe I just need to learn how to freeze and preserve! I'll figure it out slowly.

I really believe in buying organic and local as much as possible, even though my father complains about it sometimes. I cannot afford to buy everything organic, but I try to get almost all of what the kids will be eating to be organic, as pesticides and Genetically Modified ingredients have proven to be much more substantially harmful in small quantities for kids. I think that there are a lot of myths out there about organic food just being snob bourgeois bohemian fad, but I think if any one just looks at the science it is pretty much a no brainer that this is how food should be grown. The added cost is more political than because organic crops fair worse. (They actually don't fair worse in the long run. They do fair worse yields at five years, then catch up and 20, and surpass yields by 40 years, because organic methods of agriculture are more sustainable.) The cost of organics is actually a more accurate measure of what it costs to grow food in this country. As of now, small organic farms do not receive government subsidies whereas large corporate farms do. This allows them to drive their costs down. The answer would be for the government to reward sustainable agriculture instead of subsidizing agriculture that tortures our environment. I am no Ag expert, but this is the gist of everything I've read and all the research.

We do not eat a whole lot of meat, but I think meat and dairy are two of the most important things to purchase organic if you are to choose. How corporate agriculture grows cattle and produces dairy is one of the scariest things ever. Bovine growth hormone, antibiotics, pesticides and gm in the feed for the cattle, infection and illness in the cattle...it is disgusting. I would not be surprised if one day in the future it comes out that some of these strange diseases like autism or fibermyalgia or something that have skyrocketed this century are caused by some of this weird shit we eat. Now that I'm used to eating what real food looks like, I can't even look at a red delicious apple (a GM modified apple to increase the size and red color) without thinking it looks odd and fake. It's kind of like looking at a Barbie Doll version of a real fruit. (Okay, things work weirdly like that in my head sometimes.) I have a strong suspicion that the dramatic rise in severe peanut and bee allergies may be caused by genetically engineered food. They take something like scorpion DNA and put it in a peanut DNA to make it not need as much water or something, then kids that may have been allergic to something they would never encounter (a scorpion) are now allergic to peanuts. Instead of asking why is this happening? We just modify our whole lives and all of our daycare centers and airplanes and schools so peanuts are not allowed and these poor kids have to carry around epi-pens and such. When I was pregnant, there were signs all over the OB offices warning me not to eat fish due to the mercury. Fish that is so high in iron and folic acid and omega 3 fatty acids and so good for you when you are pregnant but now you can't eat it. No one questions the fact that we have so much mercury in our fish now that it can endanger unborn fetuses. No one is angered by that. We just adjust our lives to it like it is normal.

Anyway, I'll end the soapbox rant. I am not anywhere near an expert on this, many of you probably know much more than I do (I'm looking at you, Shannon!) I have just been learning over the years slowly and am slowly trying to make changes. It is a work in progress and I do it not only because it makes sense for me and the kids in every possible way, but it is a way that I can vote with my dollar when sometimes it seems that my real vote does not count for much. It is just too bad that the most dangerous, bad for you, and least nutritious food is sometimes the only food low income people can afford.

Comments

[Amanda]

That's soooo awesome! I think we would eat more fruit and vegetables if it was delivered AND looked that pretty. I get bummed out at grocery story produce... so much of it doesn't look fresh.

[luolin]

Oh, I'm angry about the mercury in fish!

I used to use celery in stir-fried dishes, but otherwise, using it up is not my strong point either. (In Old Colony, the vegetable vendors at the market would cut a bunch of celery in half or quarter it, which yielded a much more reasonable amount for me.)

Maybe if you chop a bunch up and freeze it, you could add a bit at a time to stir fries and stews when/if you cook them. Of course, I tried that with leftover Napa Cabbage and never used it.

[Linda]

We do a CSA, too. We split it with another couple. Unfortunately, it only runs through October since this is NOT a mild climate! Ours offers a cookbook (made by them) at the beginning of the year with explanations of the various veggies (we get some weird ones) and recipes. They also send out weekly emails with specific recipes for what we're going to receive that week. Now if they would only deliver . . .

[Gretchen]

Too cool, I don't know if there is CSA around where I live, but I do try and stop at farm stands and/or the weekly market. Unfortunatly, not nearly as convenient as home delivery!

The only thing I sorta-regularly use celery in is soups and stews, and hmm, on those rare occasions that I roast a bird. So maybe a potatoe-celery soup?

[shannon]

Yours is pricier than ours. Ours is 400 for 7 months for a full share--but our shares are smaller. They don't deliver to our house, but the pick up is stroller-able. Also, we have a separate (no-hormones, no-antibiotics) milk delivery company and the milk is actually cheaper from them and I don't have to lug the heavy cartons up the stairs with Nat every week. I love that!

Celery: What I'd do is use it in soup stocks. If you have some carrots, potatoes, turnips, greens, winter squash and celery (or some of those) that are looking limp, simmer them all for half a day slowly, strain them and freeze the stock to use in winter soups.

You can do that with anything left over too long or that you aren't sure how to cook and eat. Veggie stock is lovely for making rice or couscous too.

[Pamela Denchfield]

Stir-fry the celery and then add tomatoes toward the end, with fish sauce and sugar/salt. After six minutes, the tomatoes are of the best consistency. Serve over steamed jasmine rice. (Cambodian recipe.) I used to do this with beef but I no longer eat beef. You might also try with tofu. The combination of celery and tomatoes is tasty.

We just joined a CSA this year and we love it! I love knowing where my food comes from. When I eat a boiled egg, I have no question about the condition the hens are in. The couple who runs the farm, which is a few hundred feet from our front door, knows the names of each of their 88 chickens.

We do have the problem of spoiling food. We are just getting the hang of finding ways to eat them right away - I made a salad last week with the greens, cucumber, carrots, and a ginger dressing from the store, and the other day I made a stir-fry with what I got from the CSA, rather than needing specific ingredients to fulfill a particular recipe. It was SO GOOD. Tonight I plan to boil those ears of corn for a 2nd potluck dish (will have to bring the corn holders). Tomorrow I'm giving potatoes to my sister (she's giving me apples from her backyard). Even if the food does spoil, I'm glad to be supporting the farm.

[Fee]

Celery is great for stock... if you have a chicken you've eaten from, an onion a couple carrots and some celery - throw it in a pan for about 4 hours et voila you have a great chicken stock for soup. Now I've said that, you are vegetarian aren't you?!