Did you make a resolution to eat healthier in 2016? Are you interested in having fresh foods in your home more often? Are you concerned with where your food comes from or the practices by which it was grown or raised? Community Supported Agriculture, also known as a CSA may be a great option for you. A CSA typically works like a subscription. Your subscription supports aspects of local farms, such as labor, planting, seeds, equipment, livestock, and more. In return, your subscription provides you a “share” of local, fresh foods. These shares can include things like meats, produce, dairy, and even honey and wildflowers. Your subscription usually falls with the growing season for the local farms. You can usually choose the type of share you want such as produce or meat but not specifically what comes in that share. This is a great way to try new foods and recipes! If you have a produce share, it may vary with what foods are “in season” throughout the year.
Freedom Farms, located in Butler, Pennsylvania, has two unique CSA options. One is a typical subscription in which you pay up front for the season, choose your type of share bundle, and pick up at a specific drop point each week for 26 weeks (May 4–Oct 30). The other is an investment card in which you buy in increments and can use year-round at any of the Butler locations as well as farmers markets where they participate. Please visit http://www.freedomfarmspa.com/ to learn more about the options and policies.
The post Is a CSA right for you? appeared first on UPMC MyHealth Matters.