Ever since I wrote “In Search Of A Shorter Food Chain,” I have been meaning to do a full blown review of Live Earth Farm. We have been subscribers of Live Earth Farm for three seasons now (plus the new winter season that ended a few months back). I should know enough for a review by now…so…here goes.
CSA – Community Supported Agriculture
Live Earth Farm is located in Watsonville, California and sells nearly all of its produce as a CSA. CSA or Community Supported Agriculture refers to one of many methods of creating a direct link between (in this case) consumers of farm produce and the farmers that grow such produce. In the case of Live Earth Farm, the direct link is a mutual commitment — the subscribers / community commits to buy a share in the farm’s harvest and the farm commits to grow “exceptionally high quality vegetables, herbs and fruit, and deliver a bountiful portion of it to [the subscribers] every week of the season”. [Quote from the LEF Website]
Subscriptions
In the case of Live Earth Farm, the commitments last 33 weeks and, from the subscriber’s point of view, costs $28/week for the large box and $23/week for the small box (costs are for the 2007 summer season). Note that (for an additional charge) there are options for extra fruit and options for Pastured Eggs.
The Box
The large box (also know as the family share) is roughly sufficient for a family of four for one week. For this season, we are subscribing to the large box, feeding three adults and two children, and we rarely run out of produce before the week is over. The small box (also known as the small share) is roughly sufficient for a couple without kids.
The large share typically has the same types of produce as is contained in the small share but in larger quantity. Of course, there are a number of occasions when a particular fruit or vegetable is not picked in sufficient quantity to include in both the large shares and the small shares (such as early or late in that vegetable’s harvest). In those situations, the small share and the large share will include slightly different types of vegetables. [For those that seek more specifics, I encourage you to review one or more of the weekly newsletters — which describe the contents of that week’s shares).
Our Thoughts
Our family loves its membership with Live Earth Farm. It has changed our eating paradigm completely. Rather than plan out meals and then buy food for those plans, we instead receive the produce that happens to be in season for that week and then are forced to plan our meals around that produce. We have been forced to learn how to cook and eat a number of vegetables that were previously outside our normal routine and it has been wonderful. Our meals are more diverse and far more fun.
Where Next?
For those that are curious about Live Earth Farm and that read this post in time, this weekend is their Summer Solstice celebration. Summer Solstice is open to members and non-members alike, requires no tickets or reservations and includes an amazing pot luck dinner, farm tours, and a BIG bonfire. Include with all that a wonderful view of Venus and Saturn to the West and Jupiter to the South. It should be a nice afternoon and evening…and if all goes well, we’ll be there. If you attend, do try to find us.
While I was in love of the quality and variety of the produce I got in Live Earth’s boxes, it simply felt much too detached a way to get my food… picking up a box that had been depositede on my doorstep by a driver.
I’m a firm advocate of weekly visits to local farmer’s markets. I not only get to chat with people actually involved with growing what I’m going to nourish my family and self with, and I think that community feel is crucial, but, I get to see; smell and select those fruits and vegetables which appeal to my senses as being “the” perfect (insert fruit or vegetable here).
My personal involvement with selecting my food has increased the pleasure I get in preparing and cooking it “just so.” I find that I was less invested in what was happening when I got the same produce by stooping over to pick up that box at my door.
I won’t even touch on the connection that develops when we eat foods we’ve gotten on “pick your own” outings. It’s a must do and there are plenty of places in the area to do it.
Janet:
Thanks for visiting and leaving such a wonderful comment.
I too like developing a more direct connection to the source of our food. However, I am probably either a step behind you or approaching my desire for connection from a different direction.
I see Live Earth Farm as a step closer to the source of my food than my prior supplier (Whole Foods). While I did (and do) frequent farmers markets (most notably, Campbell CA’s farmers market), I still found myself tending to look for produce out of season and tending to buy produce that was more familiar to me. The “forced” consumption of in season produce has been a great benefit to us of the box.
As far as community goes, because of our subscription to LEF, we have become great friends with Dan and Stacy Scott (the hosts of the LEF drop off in Willow Glen) and we attend a number of the major LEF Events at the farm. While I cannot say that Farmer Tom would remember my name if he ran into me on the street, I believe that he would recognize me as a customer and because I have had the opportunity to look into his eyes (so to speak), I certainly do have a view of the type of person he is (and thus have view of the type of person that is growing our food).
But, in the end, all I can say is that the LEF CSA is working for us.
Thanks again for the comment.
– Jerry
JJ,
I just finished reading “Animal Vegitable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver. It is the story of her family’s commitment to eating locally for a year. Wonderful book. It got me off to a farmer’s market in very short order.
Cheers,
Ben