Farmers markets and seasonal farm tours have become hugely popular in recent years as the demand for and the romance of locally farmed food has grown.
But there is another way to take advantage of the fruit and vegetable bounties of Snohomish County: a CSA.
That’s short for community-supported agriculture, a system inspired by European practices in which consumers pay farmers a lump sum at the beginning of the growing season in exchange for weekly produce boxes. Customers pick up the boxes, also called shares, at the farm or a drop-off location.
That’s basically how it has worked since CSA programs first took off in the United States in the mid-1980s.
After the industrialization of the American food system in the 1950s and ’60s, such programs quickly became a new way for small farmers and consumers to reconnect.
That’s not to say CSAs haven’t come with disadvantages.
Customers have long bemoaned the task of keeping up with the seemingly endless supply of common crops such as braising greens and beets, or other items selected by farmers that some customers have said they would never buy if they were shopping at the grocery store.
Fortunately, CSAs are changing.
Thanks to the popularity of the eat-local movement, many local farmers and grocery delivery services have modified the traditional CSA model to better meet consumers’ food tastes and busy schedules.
Some Snohomish County farmers, for example, are now allowing customers who pay in advance to shop for their choice of CSA items right at the farm at discounted rates. Other farmers are offering home delivery of vegetable and fruit boxes, supplemented with staples such as bread and coffee.
In another variation, grocery delivery and distribution services are selling local-only produce boxes along with not-necessarily-local meat, milk, orange juice, bananas and diapers, all delivered regularly and easily customized online before delivery.
If you want to get the best of local food through a CSA, now is the time to sign up. Most programs begin in May or June.
Here’s a sampling of local CSA programs and how they work.
Garden Treasures
Who: This retail nursery and certified organic family farm and market near Arlington offers CSA-style produce shares, including a special share for seniors and low-income people. Mark and Patricia Lovejoy bought their farm in 2005 and became certified organic in April 2007. This is second year for their CSA program.
Cost: Prices are $650 for a full share (four or more people), $525 for a half (one to four people) and $450 for seniors (one or two people 60 years or older) or low-income families with proof of income status. Trial shares are available for $100 for four weeks.
Delivery area: CSA customers can shop from select items on a special display at the farm, which is about a half-mile east of I-5 Exit 208 at 3328 Highway 530, Arlington. Pick-up sites in Stanwood, Marysville, Lake Stevens, Darrington and Everett will be offered to groups of 10 or more.
When: This 25-week program starts May 15. Farm shopping hours are noon to 6 p.m. Thursdays.
What you’ll get: Customers can expect mixed greens, spinach, herbs, leeks, kohlrabi, baby broccoli, radishes, cauliflower, baby pak choi, chard and kale, plus cut flowers, heirloom tomatoes, potatoes, leeks, carrots, onions, head lettuce, sweet corn, green beans, cucumbers and summer squash as they become available.
Information: www.arlingtongardentreasures.com; 360-435-9272.
Anselmo Farms
Who: This certified organic farm and market open year-round in Machias, is run by Marie Oliver and her family and friends.
Cost: Participants pay $300 in the spring and can immediately start buying $400 worth of produce either at the farm or at the Ballard Farmers Market. Everything in the market, including organic fruit and vegetables from other growers, is eligible for purchase.
Delivery area: Shop at the farm at 1603 S. Machias Road, Snohomish, or at the Ballard Farmers Market, which is on Sundays.
When: Customers can sign up now and start shopping immediately. There is no deadline to use up your CSA budget.
What you’ll get: Early season local crops include various salad greens, followed by local spinach, sugar snap peas, green beans, cucumbers, zucchini, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, beets, celery, leeks, parsnips, potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, onions, winter squash, pumpkins, ornamental gourds, sweet corn and huge whole-head lettuces, plus 45 varieties of garlic, starting in June.
Information: 425-335-0343.
Organic Produce Shoppe
Who: The Klesick Family Farm in Stanwood has offered year-round home and office delivery of fruits and vegetables for the past nine years under the name Organic Produce Shoppe. Tristan and Joelle Klesick and their eight children live on the farm with about 10 acres planted with seasonal crops.
Cost: Boxes are $23, except the family box, which costs $30.
Delivery area: Most of Snohomish County, Camano Island, Anacortes and Mount Vernon are covered by the service.
When: Delivery days vary Monday through Thursday depending on location. One-time and every-other-week deliveries are also available.
What you’ll get: Seasonal berries and a variety of vegetables come from the Klesick farm along with contributions from other Western Washington farmers. Cherries, peaches, apricots, plums and nectarines come from Eastern Washington. Weekly delivery options include a vegetable box, a fruit box, a small box (fruits and vegetables for a family of two) or a family box (ideal for a family of four). You can add extra vegetable and fruit items as well as local honey, bread and coffee. Farmers in warmer regions such as California and Mexico provide tropical fruit as well as vegetables in the off season. Customers do not need to be home to receive their boxes.
Information: Sign up at www.organicproduceshoppe.com or call 360-629-5350.
SPUD
Who: This full-service online grocery store and home delivery service, also known as Small Potatoes Urban Delivery, offers produce from Northwest growers whenever possible, but includes imports for specialty crops such as bananas from Mexico. Numerous crops come from California when they aren’t in season locally. SPUD recently merged with Pioneer Organics of Seattle, giving the service more buying power and product offerings, including more local produce and groceries.
Cost: Produce boxes start at $15, but delivery is free if you spend $35 on your entire grocery order.
Delivery area: SPUD, founded in Canada, serves much of the I-5 corridor, including most urban areas of Snohomish County as far north as Marysville.
When: Though the service is available year round, produce is at its most local May through September. Snohomish County’s delivery day is typically Thursday. Customers do not need to be home to receive deliveries.
What you’ll get: Customers can order ala carte or sign up for a regularly scheduled Fresh Harvest Box, available once, every week or every two weeks. Participants receive an online confirmation before each delivery and can customize the produce box by deleting or adding extra items. It’s also possible to check a box that is “local only,” which means all the produce included will be grown within 500 miles of Seattle.
Information: www.spud.com; 206-621-7783.
Reporter Sarah Jackson: 425-339-3037 or sjackson@heraldnet.com. Visit her blog at www.heraldnet. com/ecogeek.
Also serving Snohomish County
The Root Connection: This traditional CSA program, one of the oldest in the United States, offers various produce shares with pick-up points in Lynnwood and Seattle and at the farm in Woodinville, starting in June. See www.rootconnection.com or call 425-881-1006.
Local Choice Food Box: Growing Washington, a nonprofit organization, has started a new farming cooperative in Woodinville in partnership with 21 Acres, another nonprofit group, and Washington State University. Multiple farms will provide a variety of crops to this CSA in which customers choose in advance which local items they would like to receive in their produce boxes; www.growingwashington.org/foodbox or 206-403-5883.
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