Summer CSA: What Members Need To Know!
Summer CSA week 14, 2021
With our first summer CSA box coming up, you want to know how to get the most out of your CSA experience. Read on to find out where, when, and how to make sure you get the correct box, learn about features that maybe you didn’t know we offer, and procedures for when something comes up.
If you have any remaining questions, feel free to reach out to our lead farmer, Caleb, at caleb@winterspringcsa.com or 262-689-9938. That’s one of the great perks of being our CSA member; you have direct access to the folks growing your food.
By working together, we can easily accomplish the goal of getting you the best and freshest local food available throughout the season with as little food waste as possible. To accomplish this, we cover many bases on our end. This includes all things pertaining to the production of the vegetables and herbs, collecting the eggs and mushroom orders from partner farmers, sending out a special e-newsletter each week, and delivering your order to your selected pick-up location.
The role that you play as a CSA member includes the initial sign-up for the season and costs paid for the CSA, retrieving your order from your pick-up location on CSA day according to your subscription, and getting ready to make some magic happen in the kitchen! With a variety of nutritious foods to keep you and your household well-fed, you will be enjoying many favorites and trying some new things!
To prepare for your first CSA day, we’ve made a fool-proof checklist for you.
Log in to your Member Portal to double-check your subscription. Find out if you are a full size or small size, every week, or every other week. If every other week, note whether you are “A week” or “B week”. Also note whether or not you have add-on subscriptions, including eggs, mushrooms, and/or flowers. All of this can be found both in your confirmation email and in your portal.
Add caleb@winterspringcsa.com to your email contacts to ensure that essential CSA communications do not go to your spam folder.
The first CSA pick-up day for those who pick up every week AND group A every-other-week is Thursday, June 13th, 2024. If you are group B, your first pick-up will be June 20th, 2024. Our Summer CSA box subscriptions are always delivered on Thursdays.
Check the hours of operation at your pick-up location. Be aware that you may not be able to pick up your share after hours, and our pick-up locations are not required to hold your share after the pick-up day.
Mark your calendar and set a reminder in your phone for each day you pick-up your CSA.
If you chose the option to pick up on the farm, please pick up your share between the hours of 11 AM-8 PM. We have limited cooler space, and cannot commit to holding your order past 24 hours. Please see Guidelines for Visiting the Farm for more info.
When you arrive, carefully remove the box labeled with your name from the stack, and leave the other members’ shares neatly stacked. Full size shares will be in a ¾ bushel box, while small size shares will be in a ½ bushel box. Click here to see an example of the box sizes.
Regardless of where you pick up, there will be a Pick-Up Sheet with your name (or the name associated with the account) next to a list of what you ordered. Please, this is extra important: check off your name on the Pick-Up Sheet when you pick up.
Collect the items listed by your name on the pick-up sheet into a bag or box that you bring with you, fold the wax CSA box, and stack it nearby. Please avoid tearing the box! The sustainability of the CSA is heavily impacted by good stewardship of the CSA boxes. We pick up those boxes weekly, and we need them back to get orders out every week. Please do not take the box with you, as they are costly to replace and we can’t afford to run out during the growing season. Thank you for bringing bags and helping us reduce waste and costs.
Check your email and make sure you have received the CSA newsletter for that week. In it, you will find information about how to identify, store, process, and make food with the contents of the box. We get the newsletter out by 2 PM on CSA day. If you don’t see it, please check that the email you are using is the one associated with your account, check the spam folder, and if that doesn’t work, you can call Caleb for further assistance.
We enjoy your feedback! Whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned CSAer, we love to hear how we’re doing, what you got cookin’, and what you’d like to see in the future. We will send out a survey around week 10 and after week 20, so there are multiple opportunities to share. Communication is welcome and encouraged!
We are thrilled to be your farm for the season. It means everything to have your trust and support for the work we do. We all do better when we all do better. After a decade of managing CSA, we joyfully continue the process of clearing the path back to local, sustainable foodways. CSA is the backbone of our farm, and we are so grateful and inspired by all of the people that we get to share the amazing abundance of this land with through food. Thank you!
