Members of the Lancaster Farm Fresh community-supported agriculture program get a weekly "share" of certified organic vegetables, grown by a cooperative of 30 local farmers. This year's season featured an optional extension that runs through Thanksgiving.
Members of the Lancaster Farm Fresh community-supported agriculture program get a weekly "share" of certified organic vegetables, grown by a cooperative of 30 local farmers. This year's season featured an optional extension that runs through Thanksgiving.
CSA members have the advantage of knowing exactly where their food comes from: Lancaster County farms, most of them Amish.
Rick Shirk sorts boxes for Lancaster Farm Fresh's community-supported agriculture program.
Margaret Ryan grew up on a farm, where she plucked vegetables from the field and put them straight into a pot.
She still does her share to support local farmers, driving three miles down the road every harvest-season Thursday to claim a cardboard box bursting with freshly picked produce.
From May to October, Ryan and fellow members of the Lancaster Farm Fresh community-supported agriculture program get a weekly "share" of certified organic vegetables, grown by a cooperative of 30 local farmers.
"There's nothing like the heirloom tomatoes," says Ryan, a retired teacher who lives in Ephrata. "I like having a refrigerator full of fresh veggies."
Just three seasons after its founding, everything about the Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA is growing.
There are more member farms, more pickup sites and a new home: a Leola warehouse three times the size of LFF's original Quarryville digs.
Next year the CSA expects to sign up 1,000 members — 10 times what it started with in 2006.
By supporting Lancaster County farmers — most of them Amish — CSA members have the advantage of knowing exactly where their food comes from, CSA manager Amy Crystle says.
"People are becoming more and more aware of the advantages of putting money into the local economy," she says.
"All the (national) contamination scares with food are really frightening."
And now, while the sweet potatoes and kale are still coming in, is the time to sign up for the 2009 CSA season — and discounted membership rates.
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Co-op member farms give up all other business to grow solely for Lancaster Farm Fresh.
Their reward, Crystle says, is a stable customer base and higher prices than auctions or other vendors offer.
"(Joining) is a big leap of faith," says Crystle, whose parents grew up on local farms. "The benefit is they can continue farming. They can make a living."
Most of Lancaster Farm Fresh's $2 million in 2008 sales comes from wholesale business with small grocers, restaurants and Philadelphia-area Whole Foods markets.
An annual CSA share is $700, which translates to $28 per week of produce. A half-share, where members receive a full share every other week, is $375. A 20-week fruit share is $120.
Many CSA members are educated, affluent and concerned about health and the environment, Crystle says. They don't mind paying more for organic, locally grown produce.
"Somebody took great care to grow it," she says. "The person who grows it cares about it."
CSA produce is harvested and packed on Wednesdays. Members pick up shares on Thursdays.
In 2009, the CSA will expand from 25 to 30 pickup sites, most in Philadelphia and surrounding suburbs, where fresh produce isn't as readily available.
Local pickup sites include Lancaster City, Ephrata, East Petersburg, Lititz and Leola. Volunteers can host additional sites for 20 or more members.
The 2009 season will run 25 weeks — three weeks longer than 2008, when the CSA sold 600 shares to 900 families (Many bought half-shares.).
Members of Lancaster's Temple Beth El joined the CSA as part of a national Jewish environmental movement called Hazon.
"We were all surprised at how interested people were and how much enthusiasm there was," coordinator Adrea Mehl says of the 63 CSA members who picked up produce at the synagogue.
"People just loved getting their weekly share."
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So what exactly arrives in that cardboard box every week?
That's the fun part.
"Kids are so excited about the vegetable box," Crystle says. "It's like Christmas every single week."
Shares — which include six to 10 types of vegetables to feed a family of four — depend on what co-op farmers harvest that week.
In July, for example, a share might include three green zucchini, three yellow squash, two stalks of fennel, two bunches of red beets, a dozen ears of sweet corn, two candy onions, three tomatoes, two heads of lettuce and one bag of green beans.
Crystle's weekly e-mails tell CSA members what produce to expect, along with easy recipes that incorporate the items, especially unfamiliar ones.
Joining the CSA encouraged Mehl and her family to try creative new dinner ideas.
"It was vegetables that I wouldn't usually buy necessarily," she says. "You get into the habit, if you go to the store, of buying the same thing."
CSA members often shared cooking ideas at pickup, Mehl says. They donated less-popular vegetables, like okra, to a local women's shelter.
The CSA also offers meat and dairy, including raw milk, at an additional cost. Members can place special orders, such as 20 pounds of canning tomatoes.
In future seasons, Crystle hopes to offer more heirloom vegetables and grass-fed meats.
"Clients are really interested in interesting vegetables or vegetables with a story," she says.
"It's not just green zucchini. Everybody gets that."
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