CSA fuels my anticipation

Just got the word back from the farmer: we're in as members of the Henry's Farm CSA, sharing a 25-week share with two of our friends. Looking outside at the latest snowfall that is starting to melt and thinking about how much I'm going to enjoy fresh vegetables.

For those of you who may be asking "what's a CSA?" Let me back up a little bit. The acronym stands for Community Supported Agriculture. My analogy is buying stock. The farmer sells shares to generate capital for this season's expenditures for seeds, plants, and equipment. I purchase a share for a set price, and I accept some of the financial risk for the season. In return, I expect to receive a box of vegetables once a week. Hopefully, the farmer has made good choices for what foods to grow for the soil conditions and the caprices of Central Illinois weather. If the harvest is good, my weekly box has monetary value of 1/25 of my share, or I get even more food as "dividends," and the farmer has extra vegetables to sell for profit. If bad, I don't recoup my costs, but I do get some food items every week and the farmer is not going to be insolvent and can farm another year.

As an additional benefit for all of us going into the CSA business together, we have a partnership around local organic farming. Shareholders are invited to visit the farm. Some CSAs, although not this one, require a certain number of hours of farmwork for a lower-priced share. The farm serves as a clearinghouse for recipe ideas. Our particular farmer has an educational focus on his farm website and he is also an author (as is his sister, who has also written a book about the farm).

If it all shakes out as the farmer and I expect it, most weeks will have an abundance of the most successful crops and a smattering of those that are not planted in large amounts or those that don't fare so well this season.

Based on the information provided about last year's seed purchase, I expect that this year I'll have a chance to taste some things I've never eaten before and will have a steady supply of some favorite summer vegetables. Also, I'll have to figure out what folks will trade me for tomatoes, which I don't eat and of which Andrew eventually will have too many.

Happily anticipating the first box at the end of May.