CSA food half shares guidance needed

[diamond]

I am considering getting into CSA for this coming spring, summer the first time ever. A farm close to us has a full share for 500 for 26 weeks (19.50/ week) and a half share for $300 for 26 weeks (at 11.50/week). I am thinking of doing the half share as full share is expensive for me. I was wanting some opinion from fellow bbbs who have CSA shares as to if this price seems reasonable? Also how much food would there be in a half share? Would it be enough for my family (me, DH and DD-2 year old). We are vegetarians and this farm is only vegetarian –no eggs, meat etc.. any suggestions. I am super excited to get started in CSA. What other stuff you buy besides CSA shares? Does the extras add up and push your food bills high? ty

[brittone2]

I think it is tough to compare one CSA's full/half share to another. We started with a half share the first year or two we were CSA members and it worked well for us. I think it is nice in that you learn what lasts the longest, what you should use up first, how to use some of the more unusual veggies (kohlrabi stumped me the first time!), etc.

If a half share fits into your budget, you should give that a go.

It is good to leave a little wiggle room budget wise for other things as you may want to buy other things at the store to complement what is in your box.

Some CSAs offer a cookbook or a newsletter or similar with tips on what to use first, what will store the longest, how to use more unusual things, how to combine what's in your box so you can use it up. That helped me the first year.

The half and full share prices you quoted are less than I remember paying for a half or full share, but it is tough to say how the quantity of items would compare. You could ask for a sample of how much produce people got last year in the beginning, mid and late season to get an idea (if you have a farmer willing to communicate that with you).

We've also done things like split a full share with my parents in the past.

[cckwmh]

the first year we did one we did the full share and it was too big for us. 2 adults and 1 child. we now do a small veggie, a large fruit, a bread and a cheese share. we supplement the veggie share at local farm stands as needed. i love that we have the fruit share and I freeze a lot and buy extra flats of berries. we still have a little bit of strawberries and blueberries in the freezer. otherwise, we would not be eating them in the winter.

[mikala]

Your price sounds similar to what we pay. We split a full share with another family and always struggle to use all the veggies before they go bad. We've gotten a lot better at it with some planning but it's still hard. We learned that pretty much anything can either be roasted or made into a slaw.

I'd go with a half share this year and then supplement from local farmer's markets and the grocery store as needed. If you find that it isn't enough you can always ask the farmers if it's possible to bump up to a full share mid-season or for the next season.

ETA: To judge quantity it may help to ask the CSA farmers if you can see pictures of past boxes or lists of what people got each week. Our CSA has a season's worth of boxes pictured week by week on their website.

[SoloMelody]

Your prices are lesser than what I have in my area PNW

One I am looking at for a family of 4-6
veg share $31.66
fruit share $22.29
comes with u-pick herb, greens and flowers

They dont do half shares, so I have to find somebody to share with.