What is a CSA Program?
CSA is an acronym for Community Supported Agriculture which describes a mutually benefiting relationship and upfront commitment between a farm and its members.
Many farmers find it difficult to predict what produce they should bring to the farmers market and get caught up in the details of selling, rather than raising their crops.
Your investment in our CSA program allows us to focus on growing the best crop at harvest and producing fresh fruits and vegetables throughout the seasons. By pre-selling our CSA farm shares we are better able to plan and in return, our farm is able to provide high-quality produce at a discounted rate to our members.
Can I choose my Farm share? How much do I get each week?
Yes, one of the most distinguishing features of our CSA Program is that you choose what goes into your produce box.
Each week we bring the entire selection of fruits and vegetables available from not just our farm, but our neighboring farms and orchards as well. We portion and display everything into three stations, and let you choose your own produce based on the size of your farm share. Our stations have anywhere from 30-50 items to choose from. A small share selects 6-8 items; a large share selects 12-15 items, and a jumbo share selects a combination of the two.
What if I am traveling?
No worries. You can miss a week and make up with two produce boxes another week. Doing a double share during a week you are having a dinner party, works perfectly! If you are missing more than one week, we suggest you have a friend pick up your second week. This is a great way to introduce new people to the CSA program (and help you earn a referral fee!
We ask that this is done within the same season (Early, Mid, or Late) for our record keeping.
What if I can’t make it to my regular pickup one week?
We understand that the weeks are busy, so we try to be as flexible as possible. You can come to any CSA program pickup during the week without notice.
What are your farming practices? Is your produce organic?
Norman’s Farm uses integrated pest management, (IPM) to provide you with the highest quality and safest food possible. We are not an “organic” farm, although we employ many organic methods.
Our crops are protected from insect and fungus problems by using primarily organically approved spray materials. We are not able to claim to be organic, in part, because some of the fertilizers applied through the irrigation system are not available in “organic form”. We try and minimize the need for spraying by selecting varieties with the highest disease resistance, and by monitoring our fields, applying pesticides only when necessary.
It has always been our policy to use organic options whenever possible and we are always looking to adopt new and safer practices. Our aim is to provide you with the best quality and safest food that we can possibly produce.