Sustainability - Join a CSA

Joining a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm is often a good step toward living more sustainably.

• Generally the farms are already certified as organic or heading in that direction because their customers demand it….and “organic” is the closest we get to sustainable farming.
• I found that I had less waste with the CSA because the veggies were ‘just picked’ and remained edible for longer once I got them home. I also learned that parts of plants that I used to throw away were actually edible (carrot tops and sweet potato leaves, for example). This is even more important in households where composting is not possible and food waste is part of the trash headed for the landfill.  We should all be striving to minimize our contribution to the landfills.
• Generally the packaging done by the CSA is minimal. Mine provided reusable bags at the beginning of the season and I could use my own mesh bags for things like spinach leaves, green beans, and small potatoes.  Sometimes the cherry tomatoes came in pulp paper bins; they are recyclable but I think next year I’ll transfer them to my own bag and just leave the bin with the CSA for them to use again. The only ‘trash’ I haven’t quite decided how to avoid are rubber bands they used for portions of onions, carrots, beets, etc.
• Another aspect that makes the CSA option more sustainable may be fuel costs for transport and post-harvest processing. The farm is less than a mile from my house. The veggies are harvested and picked up on the same day so there are minimal costs for refrigeration. The barn where the shares are picked up by participants is not air conditioned.

My first experience with a CSA was last summer and I am now a huge fan of the concept…and my particular CSA. It supplied produce from June through October. Maryland is too far north for it to operate year round (like they do in Arizona, for example). I really am missing it this winter. There are more CSAs popping up all the time; joining one is a way to begin living more sustainably (and most likely eating better too).