Want to save money and eat well? Join a CSA
Over the summer, we discovered one of our best real food finds to date: we successfully joined a local CSA. Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become one of our primary resources in our real food transformation – so much so that it is hard for me to remember what it was like without it. I would guess that CSAs are not available everywhere that we’ve lived; and I am equally sure that this is the case for many Almost Fit readers. However, my one bit of advice on this subject is simple:
Find one if you can, and treat them with great respect.
In this series on CSAs on Almost Fit, I’ll describe our experience with our CSA, how it has benefited us from multiple perspectives, how to find a CSA near you, and some ideas on what to do with the produce you receive.
You may have noticed that the second half of that statement, “find one if you can, and treat them with great respect“ is kind of an odd thing to say. Beyond the obvious human decency aspect, there is a vital reason why I’ve brought it to the forefront. But you’ll have to wait to find out.
But wait – I may be getting ahead of myself. Maybe this question should be answered first…
So uh, what is a CSA? A new college entrance exam? Some sort of all-season radial?
For those not familiar with CSA, here is a description from LocalHarvest, a great real food resource in it’s own right:
“Many farms offer produce subscriptions, where buyers receive a weekly or monthly basket of produce, flowers, fruits, eggs, milk, meats, or any sort of different farm products.
A CSA, (for Community Supported Agriculture) is a way for the food buying public to create a relationship with a farm and to receive a weekly basket of produce. By making a financial commitment to a farm, people become “members” (or “shareholders,” or “subscribers”) of the CSA. Most CSA farmers prefer that members pay for the season up-front, but some farmers will accept weekly or monthly payments. Some CSAs also require that members work a small number of hours on the farm during the growing season.” – LocalHarvest.org
Unfortunately, most CSAs only run from late spring to early fall – and quite honestly I wasn’t sure what we were going to do when ours drew to a close – we’ve grown spoiled, and truly have adjusted our eating habits to work on a seasonal basis 90% of the time. However, fortunately for us, we received some good news: we are going to continue to receive a basket for as long as there are winter crops to harvest. We really do love our CSA. 
Can’t afford organic produce? Think again
In the early days of Almost Fit, I relied heavily on our local grocery store for much of our produce. In fact, my recommendation at the time was to visit the grocery store more often if you could, while limiting your purchases to fresh produce on each visit. I still believe that this is a valid approach if the grocery store is your best source for fruits and vegetables; however, it takes discipline, because there are a lot of culinary temptations just waiting to jump off the shelf and into your cart with reckless abandon.
However, as many readers pointed out, the cost of buying organic produce in a grocery store is often prohibitive, particularly in the off-season. It goes without saying that we are all more budget conscious these days, so this problem hasn’t gotten any simpler in terms of affordable choices at a grocery store. If anything, I wouldn’t be surprised if the availability of organic produce begins to diminish as people have less money for day-to-day living.
Unfortunately my suspicion is that cheaper, more “durable” produce (like mealy, gassed tomatoes) will likely sell better when cash is tight.
But there is hope.
From a real food perspective, the advantages of locally grown organic are obvious. But from a financial perspective, it’s also one to put in the “Win” column. We have saved a tremendous amount over the last few months, and broadened our culinary horizons in the process.
So how much can you save? I’ll give you a detailed example in Part 2. Thanks for reading.
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I can’t wait to read part 2! And I’m putting “research CSAs in my area” on my to-do list for today.
Fit Bottomed Girlss last blog post..Double Dog Duty
Even the big grocery chains are catching on that more and more of their customers want their food to be fresh, local, free of drugs and pesticides and loaded with vitamins and minerals.
Instead of losing them to CSAs & farmer’s markets, they are fighting back.
In Canada, Loblaw’s, the #1 grocer, has launched this campaign – http://www.loblaws.ca/en/field_fresh.aspx
A friend of mine works for the company that came up with this “genius” marketing plan.
Loblaws wanted to cash in on the locavore / Michael Pollan food movement…without actually supplying local food.
So that is what they came up with – Grown CLOSE to Home – Like Chinese produce is right next door.
What a crock
DRs last blog post..Supercharge Your Brain On A Low Carb Diet
I believed organic was more expensive and still willingly paid the extra. Then I found the St. Paul Farmer’s Market and was very surprised when the prices were so much LESS than the stores. Now I get all my produce, meat and eggs from the same farmers every week. It’s great to get to know the farmers growing the food I feed my family.
Bonus, the farmers market will be open all winter. Of course they won’t have produce but I can still get the eggs and meat.
Jeremy – Great article and I can’t wait for the next part.
Robins last blog post..Know Your Ingredients – What is this food?
It sounds like a CSA is a great way to eat better and pay less while doing so! One of the benefits, besides the health ones, is that the money goes directly to the farmers… no middlemen! I’ll definitely be seeking out CSA’s in the area. If any one knows of any good, year-round CSA’s in Cailfornia (Sacramento, Bay Area, LA) please let me know!
Twitter: @cjguest
CSA’s are great. I’m getting ready to move next month and will be living close to an Amish community that sells lots of wonderful, organic produce and eggs. I’m looking forward to it! Not quite a CSA though….
On my last trip to the grocery I ran across a delimma that I’m sure others have….I found organic apples and non-organic. The non-organic were, however, locally grown, whilst the organic ones were from New Zealand! In that context which are better? I have to admit that I went with the non-organic ones and peeled them because I thought of the fuel and pollution caused by shipping apples from New Zealand…..
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Another great post. Looking forward to part 2 and also in search of a CSA near my soon to be new home in Washington DC
How very interesting. I wonder if there are any of these in Canada???
Christines last blog post..Lazy day…Lazy Lady
Your post prompted me to do a little research for options in our area. There seem to be quite a few sources and I’m looking forward to sampling what our region has to offer. Can’t wait for your next post!
Steve v4.7s last blog post..(Day 520 / -161 lbs.) I’m Completely Naked In This One!
Just a note to say I miss your posts and hope everything your way is just ducky.
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Personal entry: An “interesting” time for Almost Fit | AlmostFit.com Says: 07.11.08 at 1:38 am
[...] time for Almost Fit | AlmostFit.com on 10 Simple Ways to Build Weight Loss MomentumChristine on Want to save money and eat well? Join a CSADiana on 11 ways to lose weight using good table mannersJed Rose on 33 tips on how to lose weight [...]
I have looked into CSA’s before, but they were rather expensive in my area. Possibly, they are more reasonable now that food prices at the grocery store have gone up, but my grocery budget just couldn’t absorb that, even if reducing grocery store purchases. I still considered it becuase I like the idea of regular fresh vegetables every other week. The eggs would have been nice too, but none of my local’s offred them.
How to save a ton of money by buying fresh organic produce | AlmostFit.com Says: 23.11.08 at 7:21 pm
[...] Want to save money and eat well? Join a CSA [...]