If you haven’t yet heard of CSAs, I suggest you jump on the wagon next year if at all possible. Community Supported Agriculture has definitely changed the way Jon and I are eating this summer, and the fact that we’ll miss a couple weeks of vegetable deliveries while we’re on vacation is one of the few things I’ll be sad to leave behind tomorrow.
Other sites can describe the history of CSA in better detail than I, but the general idea is that you pay for a “share” of a local farm’s produce, which is generally enough veggies (and/or fruit, flowers, herbs, eggs etc.) to stuff you silly for a week. It gets regularly delivered locally from about June-October. Never heard of it? I bet there’s one near you! Look!
- Surprise #1: Although it’s an upfront investment ($300 to $550-ish), we are spending far less on groceries since we started picking up our shares. It’s basically ultra-fresh locally-grown goodness in a box, and works out to around $25/share. Completely worth it, as this fine study shows.
- Surprise #2: I figured that we already eat healthy veggiefied meals, but in fact we’re definitely stepping it up a notch now. It’s a good counter-strategy to the increased bbq consumption over the summer. :)
- Surprise #3: We really are getting main stream vegetables that are easy and delicious to prepare. Kale is certainly newer to our diet, but it is far more versatile than I previously thought. I love me some Kale Chips, now!
And, if you’re not yet convinced, the government supports it, too! What more could you ask for?!
