As the winter marches on, it is often hard to think about those first few weeks of spring. Delicious leafy greens and warm sun we have waited so long for will be welcome guests!

Now is a great time to plan on joining a CSA for the spring/summer/fall. What is a CSA you ask?

Community Supported Agriculture - basically you are purchasing a “share” of a local farmers produce for the year. You are creating a relationship with your local food grower where everyone wins!

Benefits to participating in a CSA

1. Helps the farmer by securing payment for food they will produce throughout the year
2. Supports locally grown produce which hasn’t traveled long distances to reach you
3. The produce is probably organic (or at least very close to it) and uses local labor for harvesting
4. You receive a delicious box of seasonal produce each week, often with helpful recipes

Check out the Local Harvest website to see what CSA opportunities are available in your area.

In case you don’t live near a CSA, be sure to see what farmers markets and tailgate markets are available. These weekly (and in some cases daily) shopping experiences are priceless - supporting local farmers and small businesses, getting fabulous fresh produce as well as artisan breads/cheeses/herbs, and celebrating where our food really comes from!

Here’s to Spring - let it get here soon!

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 26th, 2008 at 9:45 pm and is filed under Green Community. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.