How to determine if a CSA is a good fit for our family?

[boilermakermom]

I looked into doing a local CSA this summer. The cost is $225 for a 10 lb box and $450 for a 20 lb per week.

We would do the half share; I do not think our family of three would eat 20 lbs a week. It is all local produce grown without pesticides/man made fertilizers etc. it isn't certified organic because the farmer doesn't want to pay the $$$ for the seal. We can pick and choose what we want the 10 lbs to consist of. All potatoes or a variety of what is available; it is up to us.

We eat a good amount of fruits and veggies now, but Not sure if we spend between $15-17/ week on veggies and fruit.

I always hear great things about CSA's. Has anyone been unhappy with one? Any other questions I should ask?

[daisymommy]

The way I went about it was to keep an itemized track of what I bought each week, and how much we actually ate, and of course included prices for everything. We already ate organic store bought produce, but if you currently eat conventionally grown produce, then keep track of the conventional prices/amounts, and then compare them to what it would cost in-store for the organic equivalent.

I then took those numbers, and compared them to the CSA costs. I knew that getting local, really high quality produce delivered would cost more. But I was then able to decide just how much more I was willing to pay, and choose the best CSA for our family. Sometimes just seeing their numbers, you don't know if it's a good deal or not.

I will say that for now, prices around us have risen so much for CSA shares, that I have dropped ours and buy our organic produce from TJ's and Whole Foods, and save a bunch of money doing that. I think most people believe it would be the opposite, but not around here right now.

ETA: I really can't imagine only spending $15-$17 a week for organic produce, if you actually cook each day, and everyone eats fruits and veggies. 10 pounds for 3 people sounds like enough, so yeah, that sounds like a great deal!
I spend $25 a week. The cheapest CSA share here for one week is $35, and even then, it wasn't enough fruit for us. Hence why I went back to store shopping.

[squimp]

We have done farm shares for many years and it depends a lot on the food provided. I would ask the CSA folks what the typical box contains and then think hard about what you would eat. We loved lettuce greens and tomatoes and such but some farm shares are heavy on beets and kale and we just can only eat so much beets and kale. Honestly $15-20 a week for fruit and veggies sounds like a good deal, especially if it's stuff you will love.

[almostmom]

I think you should go for it. It isn't that much per week, and the fact that you can choose what you want is great! I have been a csa member on and off for the last 15 years. I think one of the benefits is during that time we spend less eating out because I always have veggies in the fridge that I should cook. So we save money in that way too. It also introduces you to new and beautiful veggies which can be very moving and great. I see no reason not to try it for a year. You're not going to waste the money, and the experience can be great.

[wellyes]

Getting to pick sounds great!

I had a not-great experience with a CSA a few years ago (4 maybe?) It was a year with very little rain and the crops that came to us were kind of pitiful. It wasn't the farm's fault at all. Just know that CSAs aren't risk-free.

[SnuggleBuggles]

We did an 8 week trial one last year. Thank goodness we tried it. We did ok but not great. Not worth the $ to me. Ideally, I could see splitting it with someone either by divvying the weekly bounty or alternating weeks.

[ExcitedMamma]

I loved the idea and got really into cooking healthy foods when DS started solids but for me it became too much work because I always had to shop for more veggies from the store to make any recipes with the CSA veggies. But if you can choose you might have more control to avoid this problem.