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Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program
We are sold out of all vegetable, meat, egg and flower shares for the 2010 season. Thank you for the tremendous response.New for 2010: In addition to our vegetable CSA we will have egg, flower and meat CSA. Read on for more information. What is Community Supported Agriculture?CSA is a model that has been implemented by many small farms as a mutually beneficial partnership between the business and the consumer. The consumer purchases a share of the coming season's harvest. Typically, the share is paid for well in advance of the season. Consumers receive a good value for fresh, local vegetables and an enhanced relationship with their local farm. The farm receives income in the winter months when the seed, plant and supply bills are piling up and other farm income is minimal or non-existent. CSA also provides the farm an important avenue to supply product directly to the people eating it. What is a share?One share of our CSA is one bushel of Allandale Farm grown produce per week. Half-shares, which are a half bushel in size, are also available. The cost is $610 for a full share and $360 for a half share. The 2010 CSA season will run for 20 weeks beginning June 8, 9, or 10 through October 19, 20, or 21. Shares are picked-up at the farm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays between 12 pm and 6:30 pm. In your box, you will find a full representation of the crops we are harvesting in season that week. See the crop list below for examples of what you might see in an Allandale Farm share. What are your growing practices?We use organic growing methods, following the National Organic Program, the vast majority of the time. We follow best practices as we are dedicated to protecting the health of our employees, customers, the children involved in our Outdoor Summer Program and the land that we farm. At Allandale Farm, we choose not to pursue federal certification. While most of the pest and disease control we use is certified by the Organic Materials Review Institute, at times we may opt to use controls that are similar but not certified. Often these are products that have previously been certified or are produced on equipment shared with conventional controls. We rotate our crops, ammend our fields with organic fertilizer and our own compost, and do not use herbicides or conventional fungicide. We are committed to building trust with our customers and are happy to share detailed growing and handling practices of the food that you can buy here. Feel free to email Jim, our farmer, with any questions. Are there any other benefits to being a CSA member?Yes. Our cashiers will have your name on file so that you can receive 10% off all in-store purchases on your weekly pick-up day. In addition, we plan to offer seasonal crop walks around the farm and fall hayrides to our CSA members. "The Pick List", a CSA newsletter with crop and farm information, recipes and more will be emailed regularly. How do I sign-up?2010 CSA shares will be available for our CURRENT CSA members beginning on Monday, January 18, 2010 and for NEW members beginning on Monday, February 8, 2010. Please fill out the agreement and sign-up forms. The forms with checks can be mailed or dropped off at Allandale Farm. Egg CSA: One dozen eggs for 20 weeks. These eggs come from our free-range chickens that live in a movable trailer in our fields. Pick-up days are Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays. Starts June 8th, 9th, or 10th, and ends October 19th, 20th, 21st. The cost for our egg CSA is $100. Flower CSA: One bouquet a week for 10 weeks. The bouquets are made with fresh-cut flowers from Allandale. You can expect a wide range of colorful flowers seen in New England in the summers. Wednesday pick-up only. Starts July 21st and ends September 22nd. The cost of our flower CSA is $100. Meat CSA: We are very excited to offer whole lambs for pick-up Friday, October 15th. Our lambs are humanly raised with plenty of sky, grass, fresh water, and no antibiotics. The meat comes frozen, butchered into different cuts, wrapped in paper, labeled, bagged, and boxed. The price of the lamb is $9/ pound, and they average 45- 50 pounds each. There is a $50 deposit for our meat CSA. All of these dates are weather dependent and subject to change. Allandale Farm 2010 Agreement and Sign-up Form. Please print and sign these two forms. Send them and a check made out to “Allandale Farm” to: Allandale Farm CSA Join our email list to receive notification of CSA and other farm news. Sample Crop List
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