CSAs and farm markets

Joining a CSA is one of the best things you can to do help support local farmers. It's convenient (most will deliver to your door)  and exciting, because each week you'll get new fruits and veggies to experiment with. Leeks, anyone?

so what is a CSA?

at the beginning of the season, farmers will sell "shares" of their crops. usually there are a limited number of shares to be purchased. you pay for your share at the beginning of the season. Expect to pay a few hundred bucks. This ensures you will receive weekly deliveries of fresh fruits and veggies throughout the growing season. This is a great opportunity for people who may not be able to get out of the house or don't have time to visit the farm market every week.

Ohio is full of farmers participating in CSAs. for a list visit localharvest.org

Another option I recently discovered is greanBEANdelivery. It's similar to a CSA but you can pay weekly for your basket of produce (instead of paying hundreds at the beginning of the season) and you can even customize your basket.  You are not buying directly from the farmer. They source their products from farmers all over Ohio and often Indiana and Kentucky. You can add farm fresh milk, eggs, and even meats to your basket. Just be careful because they do sell mass produced products on their site. Take the time to read where the product is coming from before you assume it's been cultivated/processed by a local farmer.


greenbeandelivery.com

And another thing. rather off topic. when you visit your farm market, don't assume that everything sold there is:
A) organic
B) from ohio
C) grown by the person selling it to you
D) non-gmo (genetically modified)

Ask about where it comes from and how it's grown. You might be surprised by the answer.