Everything You Need To Know Before Signing Up For A CSA

Let's start with a benefit of CSAs. If you look at the total value of your share across the season, your allocated produce may result in savings on your food costs. Prices for CSA shares will vary based on your location, but you can generally expect memberships to fall between $400 and $700. 

If you want to save money, you'll have to compare the weekly share cost to your typical vegetable consumption to see what's the least expensive option. In a direct comparison, Bring Me the News found one box in a Minnesota share to be cheaper than comparable produce at all but two local grocery stores (Whole Foods and Fresh Thyme), where many of the chains didn't even have as many organic options as the farm share.

You might suspect that CSA shares are cheaper than the grocery store because you are shortening the supply chain. When you don't buy directly from farms, there are additional parties that need to make money before the food lands in your shopping cart. This might be a contributing factor, but Don't Waste the Crumbs suggests that farms discount CSA memberships in exchange for advanced payment. By pre-paying for the season, they calculate that shareholders could save about $44 per month compared to buying those same vegetables at the producer's farm stand.

One of the most important questions to ask yourself whenever you are considering joining a CSA is which size share is right for you. Choosing the wrong size could leave you needing more supermarket runs or unnecessarily throwing out food.

Most farms will offer at least two options, a small and a large share. Small shares are generally recommended for households of 1-2 people, while the larger size may be better for families with 3-4 people. Individuals and couples would benefit most from the small boxes, or perhaps families looking to casually introduce more local produce into their diet. The large shares would be ideal for families with multiple children, but it doesn't have to be limited to single households. If you pair up with a few friends and split the cost, a large box could be an economical way to get fresh, organic produce every week. Plus, you can switch off weeks for pickups.

You should also think about what mix of produce you'd like to receive. The most common option is a vegetable share that offers the occasional fruit, but you may find offerings in your area for a more even split or even just fruit if that's what you like.

On top of the time commitment, CSA shares can provide a shocking amount of food. Even if you already cook a lot, the small share might be more produce than you can eat in a week by yourself. You should plan for there to be weeks where you have to get creative with meal planning. A bit of great advice is to cook recipes that will use a lot of produce, such as smoothies, soups, and salads. Other ideas include stir-fry and curry dishes. You may even want to prep and freeze vegetables for future use.

If you are partaking in a fruit share, making homemade jam is a great way to use up fresh berries, which tend to go bad quickly. How many times have you brought home some beautiful cartons of berries only for mold to appear before you start eating them?

Another way to make the most of your produce is to ensure a longer shelf life. By storing vegetables correctly, you can limit your food waste. Don't store onions with your potatoes, as alliums can cause your spuds to sprout prematurely. Leafy greens, as another example, will last the longest if you wash them as soon as you bring them home. Wrap cleaned greens in paper towels and store them in sealed containers or plastic bags to keep them crisp.

When you sign up for a CSA share, you have to prepare yourself to come up with meal ideas on the fly, as each week will provide different items. Your box dictates what you are going to cook each week, and if you rely heavily on recipes to cook, keep in mind that you'll have to wait and choose recipes until you know what will be in your next box.

Farms typically send a weekly newsletter detailing what they are currently harvesting, but it might come only a couple of days before pickup. We've also found that farms might err on the side of more general descriptions to avoid giving shareholders false expectations. A farm might be harvesting four types of squash and list "squash" in the weekly harvest email instead of specifying delicata, acorn, or butternut. That way, they won't need to rely on just one variety to fill all the shares. In that case, you may not know exactly what is coming your way until you open the box.

If you have picky eaters in your family, see if you can find a farm with a pick-your-own model. The CSA at Verrill Farm in Massachusetts allows members to select what will be in their box each week with a pickup experience that resembles shopping at a farmers market.

When you shop at the grocery store, you rarely get to know much about the produce you are buying, aside from the country or state of origin. One benefit of CSAs is that they reconnect consumers to the land. There are some cooperative-style CSAs that gather produce from multiple locations, but in general, you are choosing to invest in a specific farm. You can shop around before deciding, and you may even consider factors other than cost and pickup schedule. If desired, you can choose a farm that fits certain criteria, such as being woman-owned, but maybe you'll find a farm with a story that just appeals to you more than others.

CSAs give consumers the opportunity to understand not only where their produce is grown but also who is growing it. Those weekly newsletters can make you feel more connected to your farmers and your food. Another upside of CSAs is knowing that your investment helps provide the funds for farmers to buy seeds and equipment they need for the growing season. You don't get to feel that same impact when shopping at the supermarket.

Farm shares are a great way to get freshly-picked local produce, but it turns out CSAs aren't just for fruits and vegetables. A whole assortment of food companies now offers CSA-style services, from wineries to creameries. Like regular CSAs, these memberships help connect consumers with food producers and procurers, making your meals feel a little less anonymous.

If you live in New England, you can sign up for a meat share from Walden Local Meat where you'll get a curated mix of meats each month along with information about where the animals were raised. Perhaps you don't eat much meat but love seafood. Mermaid's Garden in Brooklyn provides a seafood share where members get weekly bundles of filleted fish. Another unique offering comes from Farm Feast in Massachusetts. This is a grain share with an annual distribution. The half shares come with 30-40 pounds of heritage grains and corn as well as heirloom beans and wheat, while the whole share gets you 60-80 pounds. You will need room to store a year's supply of grains, and it's also ideal if you have the equipment and time to mill your own flour.

CSAs certainly have a lot of benefits, but it's not without uncertainty. This model works because both parties (farmers and community members) share the risk of the growing season. Similarly to traditional shareholders, as a CSA member, you are assuming a part of the business's risk, and farming is not the most predictable industry.

With the upfront payments, CSAs help ensures that farmers get some income regardless of that season's harvest without having to take on high-risk loans. What this means for you is that when a farm has a tough growing season, your share may contain less produce than you anticipated. You might really be looking forward to summer tomatoes, but if it's a low crop year for that item, you probably won't get as much as you want. This is all part of the wager of CSA memberships. You're essentially a temporary investor in the farm. It's certainly a gamble, but if you're lucky, you'll get to enjoy a bountiful harvest.