Q: What is Community Supported Agriculture?

Community Supported Agriculture, most commonly called "CSA," is a growing, 20-year-old movement in which organic farmers sell directly to consumers, forming a unique community and partnership with them. In a CSA, subscribers help support small, regional farms by paying in advance for fresh, organic produce delivered weekly (or, in our case, biweekly)throughout the year.

The CSA model is good for consumers. With CSAs, the variety of fresh, delicious food delivered to you is regionally grown using a minimum amount of fuel and packaging. They provide the consumer with a direct connection to the place where their food is grown and the people that grow it. Eatwell Farm's CSA members have opportunities to visit the farm, get to know the farmers and other members of the CSA community, and learn more about sustainable agriculture.

CSAs are good for farmers. Farmers receive a steady source of income and a guaranteed market for their produce, which relieves much of the risk of small-scale farming. And through CSAs, farmers are able to plan and pick crops more effectively.

Q: How much does it cost?

We recommend you start with a four box trial subscription, which costs $98 ($112 with a half dozen eggs or $126 with a dozen). You may then choose to renew for another 4 weeks at the same price. Or ask for 12 boxes, with the 13th free, for $294 ($336 with a half dozen and $378 with a dozen). Likewise, 26 boxes cost $588 (or $672 with a half dozen and $756 with a dozen). The prices are the same for every-other-week service, as is the size of the box. The difference is simply that a four- box trial would take 8 weeks to complete, 13 boxes would come over 26 weeks, and so on.

Here's another way of looking at the prices:

DOZENS OF EGGS	FOUR BOXES	12 BOXES (with the 13th free)	24 BOXES (with two free)
0	$98	$294	$588
0.5	$112	$336	$672
1	$126	$378	$756
1.5	$140	$420	$840
2	$154	$462	$924
2.5	$168	$504	$1008
3	$182	$546	$1092
3.5	$196	$588	$1176
4	$210	$630	$1260

Q: Can I choose what I get?

Your box is a selection of the best of that week's harvest. We cannot customize the boxes and keep our prices low. Services that allow you to choose your box items are more expensive, and they tend to be delivery services rather than farms. We know you may not be able to use certain items, so we have "trade boxes" at most pick-up sites. With these boxes, you can leave items you don't like. For each item you leave, we invite you to take a different item. We leave a few extra items in these boxes when we drop off the boxes, so there should be always be something you to trade for.

Q: How much food is it?

You will receive generally 9-12 different items. The quantities of each item are those that have worked well for our members in the past. In a typical spring week, you might receive a bunch of greens, a pint of strawberries, two pounds of fava beans, a half-pound of sugar snap peas, a bunch of fresh herbs, a half-pound of salad mix, a bunch of green garlic, a half-pound of spinach, and a bunch of green onions. In the summer, you might receive a pound each of peaches, plums and nectarines, a pound of summer squash, a pound of onions, a pound of green beans, two pounds of tomatoes, two cucumbers, and a bunch of basil. In fall, a box could include grapes, eggplant, stir fry greens, apples, potatoes, onions, tomatoes, leeks, parsley, and butternut squash. In the winter, we might pick for you kale, satsuma mandarins, broccoli, apples, leeks, cabbage, chard, lettuce, rutabagas, and fresh herbs.

We recommend one box every week for families or two vegetarians. Every-other-week service is sufficient for single people or up to five people who want to supplement meals with vegetable sides. For large families or households that cook many vegetable main dishes, we recommend ordering two boxes a week or supplementing our box with produce from the farmer's market.

Q: I'm new to cooking. Do you provide recipes?

Yes. We write a newsletter every week that includes several recipes that use the produce in that week's box. The newsletter will also have quick cooking tips and a lot of information about what's going on out at the farm.

Q: What is the exact address of my pick-up location?

Many of our pick-up locations are at private homes--on porches, in basements or in garages. To protect the privacy of our hosts, we will give you the address of the pick-up location once your membership is paid and you have a confirmed delivery. We email this information by the Friday before your first pick-up. If we do not have an email address for you, we will call you.

Q: How large is the box? How heavy? Can I carry it home?

The box is about 2-1/2 feet by 1 foot, and 10 inches tall. The weight is generally between 7 and 15 lbs. They are not difficult to carry, even for several blocks--we easily carry three at a time! We suggest unpacking your box into your own bags or a backpack. If you do this, please be sure to flatten the box when you are done. Otherwise, don't forget to return your boxes each week . . .

Q: Why do you package some of your produce in plastic bags? I'm really trying to cut down on plastic use and would appreciate my produce in either re-used plastic or a different kind of material. Can you do something about this?

Ah! I see you've found one of the huge walls sustainably-minded farmers run up against and just can't seem to get around -- you're certainly not the first member who's asked for fewer plastic bags, and you can rest assured this is something we'd love to remedy as well! Unfortunately, there aren't many good alternates for plastic bags. I'd like to explain a bit of why they're necessary.

First of all, at the most basic level, we need to ensure that our produce reaches our members in the best state possible. Many veggies—greens, in particular—need to be kept in plastic bags for this to occur. Why not re-use the plastic bags we've been sending out for years, you might ask? Well, that's due to health code and organic certification laws. We are required to use new ones. So, we're forced to use food-grade plastic bags in order to keep our produce in good shape and we have to use new ones each time for safety and sanitation.

Sometimes folks are confused why certain items are bagged, when they don't seem to need the plastic protection (for example, the citrus fruit). This comes down to what it takes to pack 800 or so boxes each week. Here's a quick rundown of how a box-packing session goes:

First, the boxes are formed and stacked for ease of counting and re-counting and to make sure they are easy to grab.  Then, as each harvested item comes in from the field, it is rinsed/cooled and then weighed appropriately and re-packed into bins. The bins then go into the walk-in cooler. Or, if a whole load comes in at once, some items go directly into the walk-in (to be taken out later and then rinsed and packed).  We also have to portion out the items we receive from other farms.  Then, once everything is assembled, all of the bins come out of the walk-in and into the packhouse.  The empty boxes sit at one end of the accordian-style conveyor belt (it has rollers and isn't motorized), with the empty truck at the other.  The produce is spaced out down the line, with the heaviest items closest to the boxes (to be packed first) and the lightest, most fragile items near the truck (to be packed last).  Each member of the crew takes one or two items, depending on the ratio of people to produce, and then the boxes start rolling down the belt.  One person takes the box and loads the heaviest item in, sending it down the line to the next person waiting with the next item.  When the last item is tucked inside, the box is closed and then carefully stacked into the truck, along with the egg coolers (which are placed in the truck in order of delivery to make it easy to find the correct one for each site without having to move too many boxes).  It's a rather fun, fast-paced procedure, and weighing out each item along the line takes considerably more time.  It creates bottlenecks and some confusion and lessens the efficiency of the whole process. Thus, packing individual items into bags ahead of time is essential.

 I hope that all makes sense. We're constantly on the lookout for affordable alternatives to plastic bags—if you hear of anything, please let us know!

Q: Can I postpone boxes when I go on vacation?

Yes. You can postpone boxes for any reason at all, with no penalty. Simply let us know before 10 a.m. on the Friday before delivery, and we won't pick for you that week. If you go away at the last minute, we will not be able to credit you for the box. While we pick most items the day before delivery, we need time to plan the harvest and update our database. If you missed the cancellation deadline, we can contact your site host to donate your box. We are currently donating to the Charlotte Maxwell Complementary Clinic in the Mission and to the Wednesday Night Suppers for homeless youth in the Castro neighborhood of San Francisco. In the past, we have partnered also with the Haight-Ashbury Free Medical Clinic and the Yolo County Food Bank. Just call us by the day before delivery to donate your box.

Q: I signed up for every-other week deliveries. How does that schedule work when I cancel a delivery?

When you are on our every-other week delivery schedule and cancel one delivery, your next box will arrive on the regularly-scheduled pickup day. We cannot move your delivery to the following week. For example, let's say your four-box trial schedule indicates that you will receive your boxes on weeks A, C, E, and G. You need to cancel your week C delivery because you will be out of town. Your boxes will then come on weeks A, E, G, and I. You can always call with any questions!

Q: Do you have home delivery?

No, we do not current have a home delivery service. We would have to charge several more dollars per box to deliver our boxes to the homes of all our members. We'd also need to buy more trucks and hire more drivers, which is beyond us at the moment. We hope there is a pick-up location near you. If not, consider becoming a host!

Q: How can I become a host?

Our hosts have homes or businesses where we can leave a stack of boxes in a shady, sheltered place for several hours. They are kind people who help us out because they support what we're doing. If you'd like to become a host, please email us at organic@eatwell.com with your name, address, phone number, and a description of your site. We'll let you know if we can consider your site. If we determine it makes sense for us to consider it, we'll try it out in the truck one week, then begin advertising it on our website. When we have several people interested, we'll begin delivering to you.

Q: What if I forget my box?

We guarantee our produce and eggs through the end of the pickup times determined by us and the hosts of each site. If you are running late and don't think you'll make it, please try to call your host by the end of the pick-up hours for your delivery site. If you forget, some hosts will keep the boxes through the following day. In most cases, people are able to get their boxes late, but neither the farm nor the pick-up hosts can be responsible if your box is not available. We will not refund or replace it since we did pick, pack and deliver it at your request.

Q: Can I pay by credit card?

Yes. After you fill out the application form and we have contacted you about an opening in our CSA, call the office to pay by credit card. Please have your credit card ready when you call and note that I do not keep the numbers on file unless specifically asked to do so by a member!. 866.627.2465

Q: I'm done with my four week trial and I want to continue. What should I do?

On your next-to-last delivery, you'll receive a renewal form with your newsletter. Simply fill it out and include a check or a credit card number, and return it by the Friday before you want your renewal to begin. If you're renewing at the last minute, please call with a credit card number to make sure you can get a delivery the following week. .

Q: Do you have events?

Yes, we have events throughout the year for our CSA members, both on and off the farm. For our Strawberry Days in May, you are invited to come and eat sun-warmed berries in the field. This year we are hosting a Summer Solstice sleepover in the orchard (space is limited, so be sure to sign up as early as possible!). At the end of the summer, we host heirloom tomato tastings in San Francisco and the East Bay. On Labor Day weekends in the past we have also invited members to camp in the orchard and enjoy a meal made from our produce. Recently we did a free slide show at the Oakland Public Library and brought produce to taste. All of these events are advertised in the newsletter and are free for CSA members.