In my last post I discussed how certified organic produce often has to travel long distances before it reaches your grocery store, therefore having a large carbon footprint. If this environmental dilemma perplexes you as much as it perplexes me, I have found a solution. The solution is community supported agriculture, or CSA. Local farmers grow food and then directly sell their crops to shareholders in the local community. Many of these farmers are not certified organic, but do in fact use safe, responsible growing techniques that are mostly organic in practice. My friend has been participating in Farmer Dave's CSA for two years and loves it. I finally decided to try it as well, and signed up for the Spring share about 3 minutes ago! Here is the link: http://www.farmerdaves.net/csa. The price of a subscription may seem steep at first, but it is important to remember that farming is expensive and that the shares are over a long period of time (so you will get a lot of good, fresh produce). They also do a lot of greenhouse growing, which cost a lot to build, heat etc. Check out the website's FAQ and other features to learn more. Pretty soon I hope to be enjoying local, organic, healthy produce, even in the middle March! That is unbelievable!
