PrintAre CSAs Cost Effective for Your Family?
I am continuously looking for ways to cut my grocery bill for my family of four. We love fresh fruits and veggies, which as a rule, can be pretty expensive. I love the idea of a CSA, primarily because I think supporting local farms is so important, and secondarily because the idea of getting the freshest, locally grown produce is intoxicating to me...however, I'm wondering if it makes sense for my wallet, which has felt the ever-increasing squeeze of this horrible economy. If you are part of a CSA, what has been your experience? Do you find that it saves you money in the long or short run? Is it expensive? Do you end up with more wasted, unused produce? Has it cut your grocery bill?
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19 Comments:
My girlfriend and I split a small box designed supposedly for an individual. This year it is 300 for 23 weeks. $13 worth of produce / week. I found during the late spring through summer to typically be more produce than I could have bought for $13. To me it has been very cost effective, and as a supplement to our small garden, makes for excellent healthy eating. For 4 years we have never wasted anything from our boxes, but that is because we get a small box to split. A larger box would have meant we didn't purchase items from other farmers at the farmers market and I prefer more variety.
intheyearofthepig at 11:03AM on 01/28/09
When I checked the cost of CSA in the area, I knew it wouldn't be cost-effective for us. I would inevitably still have to buy other vegetables, plus, I do a lot of preserving - freezing, pickling, jamming, etc., and would need more of some stuff, less of other, so it just wouldn't work for me. Also, much as I fancy surprises, let's face it, I love to be in control of what I get:-).
Since we, too, eat lots of fresh fruit and veg, we found a local U-Pick farm instead. To me personally, it's a much better choice than CSA. You still support local farmers and eat seasonal, locally grown produce. You also get to choose what you pick and how much or little of it you pick. The prices are unbeatable (tomatoes were $0.35-0.55/lb, herbs - $1/lb (oh yes, I went crazy:-)), cukes - $0.40/lb, basically, everything was under $1/lb as far as I remember) and we certainly did cut our grocery bill, a lot - my wallet and I still feel it, as we're still using the onions and the sweet potatoes we picked in early October (I have a cool basement). And of course, we're eating all kinds of goodness I preserved in August-September.
And as I've said on numerous occasions before, there is something to be said for actually picking your own produce - we found that we really enjoyed the process. Among other things, it also makes you appreciate more what you eat. It doesn't take a long time - we would usually be done within an hour. It's a fun thing to do with your family, too.
brooke29 at 11:10AM on 01/28/09
I wish I could participate in a CSA, but shares in my local ones seem to sell out immediately! U-pick is awesome (I used to do this once in awhile as a kid in California), but it's totally not feasible for those of us who are car-less in a big city. My friends who have CSAs occasionally struggled with finishing everything, but then I would see their shares and realize I would eat that much produce in a matter of days. If you're a produce-loving family it's definitely worth giving it a shot - you'll probably end up having to augment your share with farmers' market trips, but what a great way to introduce your family to a variety of produce and to explore new recipes!
producestories at 12:48PM on 01/28/09
I don't think the CSA I belong to saves me money per se, but that's also because between two of us, we sometimes just can't eat all of it. Part of that has to do with selection - when it's all dark leafy greens and winter squash, some if it inevitably goes bad, which happened too often during the "fall" season that just ended. However, things have been better with this season. They have a trade bin where you can exchange things, and I traded collard greens and another greens bundle (just too much greens for me!) for more grapefruits and another bag of wheat berries. At ~$18-20/week, I can't say it's cost effective. But it is organic, so it probably would cost almost that much to buy all those things organic at the store (epsecially the schmancyfancy organic grocery store). Plus, it's a fun experiment in seasonal foods and supporting local farmers.
joyyy at 12:58PM on 01/28/09
I've looked into it several years in a row, and no matter which farm or which plan, there are always things that I'd need to buy elsewhere, because not every farm plants every bit of produce that I'd want to have.
I figure I spend about $20/week on average at the farmer's market, but that includes things like mushrooms, stone fruit, apples, goat cheese, honey, and other things that wouldn't be in a CSA box.
Another thought -- even when the farms have similar produce, some are better than the others with certain crops. There's one place that's better than the others in terms of peppers, and one that's better with things in the cabbage family. So I like the idea that I can shop around at the farmer's market and get the best of what's available that week.
If we were a family of four or six, it might be fun to get a CSA share for one or two, so that we had a certain amount guaranteed to arrive, and then I'd still need more, so I could do the choosy shopping at the farmers market.
Sigh. I wish it was open now.
dbcurrie at 1:27PM on 01/28/09
I looked into the one in our area as well, and as much as I love the idea, it's just too pricey for us. Surprisingly, I can get a better deal at Whole Foods down the street, which is a shame.
-Dawn
Wicked Good Dinner
WickedGoodDinner at 1:44PM on 01/28/09
It's really only cost effective for me because I volunteer at the farm. Depending on the number of hours I volunteer, I receive either a half or full box each week during the season. If the CSAs you're interested in have websites, check them out to see if they offer the same deal - I found out mine was looking for volunteers by happenstance.
GirlintheCurl at 4:29PM on 01/28/09
My 2-person home did a $300 small share last summer/fall. I wouldn't say we lost money on it, but it wasn't worth it. We got way more greens than we could reasonably use, and many of them were the kinds best served cooked. I'm not going to make collard greens seven nights a week in the middle of July.
Similar story on the squash. I like squash, but not enough to find new and interesting ways to serve it every night.
This year, we're hoping to shop at the farmer's market and/or find some u-pick places.
marzipanda at 4:52PM on 01/28/09
One of my favorite parts of the CSA experience was going to the pick-up spot bi-weekly and seeing lots of new people, all of whom had at least one interest in common with me. Mine is a two-person, one-rabbit household and we get a half-share of vegetables. I think for us, it was a great financial deal, but it helps that we have somebunny who likes all the greens, all the time, preferably raw :-) I think we paid about 300 for our summer-long half share. It was pricey, but very similar to shopping at farmer's markets in our area. Organic veg is not easy to come by in our local, less-expensive grocery stores--and that's pretty much exclusively what we feed the bun. I figure he's more sensitive to chemicals than my SO or I would be.
littlestcapy at 4:58PM on 01/28/09
No. In my area it would cost $700 a quarter and we can get better prices at our local farmer's market. In my area, I think mainly rich people do this.
caliro at 5:13PM on 01/28/09
Not to be dumb here . . . but what is a CSA? I don't think we have them here, at least I've not heard anything about them.
gourmetgal at 5:26PM on 01/28/09
@gourmetgal - CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Basically, you pay a farm a certain amount of money in advance and receive a box of seasonal produce in return, usually, on a weekly basis. Typically, there are two options - you can opt to purchase a full share (usually, enough for at least 4-6 people) or a half share (which is supposed to be good for 2-3 people). For the most part, there is no guarantee what (and how much of it) you'll get every week (or once every two weeks, in some cases) - it depends on the crop and, naturally, you will get more of whatever is abundant and vice versa.
It's a great way to support local farmers and to ensure you have a steady supply of seasonal local produce, a win-win for everyone.
The downside of the CSA system is, of course, that you don't really know what you'll be getting, but it can actually be fun.
brooke29 at 5:53PM on 01/28/09
@caliro - where do you live? $700 for a quarter what? A quarter share? Or a quarter of the year? I think you may have your numbers mixed up... I have a half share, which cost me $350 and will provide me with 25 weeks of produce. That comes out to $14 a week for what I fear will be much more veggies than I can handle. Hardly something I'd say is exclusive to "rich people," especially considering the quality of the produce. And I'm in NYC, probably more expensive here than anywhere else. The cost of joining a CSA is much cheaper for me than shopping in my local stores. I can spend $14 just on one dinner.
simon at 6:28PM on 01/28/09
@simon My CSA half-share last year was at least $700 - I think it was $765. I'm in Northern California (smallish town in wine country), and my half-share included: veggies, fruit, a half-dozen eggs, and a loaf of good bread each week, plus cheeses once a month.
The fruit was a waste - Driscoll's raspberries in the box, and hard-as-a-rock peaches with stickers on them were so disappointing, although some weeks were better. The veggies had good and bad - loved the tiny heads of interesting lettuces and the fresh carrots, but it turns out that I don't like turnips and was perfectly happy living a life without collard greens!
I loved the eggs (the blue and green kind just made me happy to use), and the bread was from a bakery that I like, but they're at the local farmer's market every week anyway. The cheese was just bad judgement on my part - there wasn't anything that I couldn't access at the local markets.
I won't be re-upping next year, but I definitely still see the value of being in a CSA, especially at a lower commitment level than I had. Part of my problem was that my pickup day was the same as the local market, so I was overwhelmed with produce on Tuesdays.
cyberroo at 6:39PM on 01/28/09
@simon - when I was looking into CSAs in my area, they were about $26-$30 a week for half a share (I'm in NJ), and considering that I would still need to buy vegetables, it wasn't that cheap. Prices do vary from place to place. $14 really is very cheap!
brooke29 at 6:50PM on 01/28/09
I have to take your word for it caliro, but I cannot believe that there are not affordable CSAs in LA Co (I clicked through to see what part of the country you are in). Everyone here in NC that I know with a CSA is relatively poor. Not on government assistance poor, but service industry, no insurance, no savings, no assets poor. Many CSA's are $700 or $1000 but many are cheaper and half shares are half price. There are CSAs of practically endless variety.
I do understand getting too much squash or greens at times, that can be a drag. But getting lots of greens means I eat a lot of greens and, well, there is no one I know, myself included, that could not benefit from eating more greens.
If you don't like getting too many greens, you can switch farms the next season and talk to the farmer before you sign up about what they typically have available. One of the best parts of a CSA is communicating with the farmers on a more personal level than even at the farmers markets.
look at Local Harvest http://www.localharvest.org/
for more information or to find a farm in your area. The entire Eastern half of the US is covered and much of the West coast. Many cities now have Urban Harvest initiatives that can also serve as CSAs.
I guess 300 for a season is pricey, but even not having a lot of money, I spend at least $20 on fruit and vegetables / week. A luxury I suppose, but I do my best to remember that growing food in a sustainable way is hard work and not cheap. I spend most of my money not spent on rent and bills on sourcing the best food I can get on a small budget and a CSA serves that purpose perfectly.
I certainly am spoiled by farm fresh produce in NC, and I guess these comments make it clear that location is pretty important in getting the most out of a CSA.
I can't wait for mine to start again the last week of April.
intheyearofthepig at 6:51PM on 01/28/09
I am in North Carolina - I did an excellent CSA last summer that was about $150 for a "couple" sized share for 12 weeks (they did a 12 week spring/summer session and a 12 week summer/fall session). They did vegetables, meat, and eggs, and they also allow you to pick what comes in the box via email each week, taking out some of the surprise factor.
I ended up renewing for this year but I did think long and hard about it - there are a few weeks where you never want to see another zucchini again. But it is fantastic on weeks when I am pressed for time to be guaranteed a box of delicious fresh food, and it also is a fun way to learn how to cook new things that I might not have tried otherwise.
QueenHerm at 8:01PM on 01/28/09
@Simon - Could you share the name of your CSA? I too am in NYC and have found that many CSA's are beyond my budget, but around $14/week sounds great!
melisse at 9:37PM on 01/28/09
We joined a CSA a few years ago, and while the produce was good it turned into a leafy-greens extravaganza: only a few potatoes, tomatoes, etc - mostly 3 zillion kinds of lettuce, etc. We wound up giving most to my sister-in-law, who's gone vegan. The price wasn't bad - I think it was less than $400 for the season - but we didn't renew for the following year. We're back to going Farmers Markets locally instead.
Robbo at 5:42PM on 01/29/09