Food Matters’ CSA 2011
What Is The Food Matters CSA?
The Food Matters Community Supported Agriculture program seeks to source local produce and products for our members for thirty eight weeks out of the year. Our CSA gives you access to the broad network of farmers and producers we use for our restaurant. As a result we are able to provide a longer running and more diverse offering of our region’s bounty. Tom and Christy each have more than 15 years restaurant experience and have worked hard to form relationships with the farmers and producers whose foods you will come to know and love.
Duration Of CSA
We will provide 37 weeks of produce and/or products for pick up on Saturdays at Food Matters. Beginning March 5 and ending November 19 (no pick up on August 20.)
Cost of CSA
$23 per week for each share, 37 weeks, $851.00 plus tax.
Payment Terms
Payments are due on or before February 27. We would prefer you paid for your entire share in advance. We are willing to allow partial payments - either two or four. The whole or partial payments must be made on the following dates:
One Payment: $851.00 plus tax due February 27.
Two Payments: $425.50 plus tax due on February 27, $425.5 plus tax due July 9
Four Payments: $212.75 plus tax due on February 27, $212.75 plus tax due on April 23, $212.75 plus tax due on July 9 and the final $212.75 plus tax due on September 17
All 2010 Members have a guaranteed spot should they choose to join.
Accepted Forms of Payment
We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, cash, and personal checks. Please do not pre-write your check without the tax!
Items and Amounts Included in Weekly Deliveries
Produce and products will be gleaned from the farmers, gardeners, producers, co-ops, and community garden plots we steward. We, like the farmers, cannot guarantee the availability of anything at anytime. All produce from our farmers is either Certified Organic or the farms are practicing organic but not seeking certification or cannot afford certification.
In addition to produce, we may supplement your bag with items such as honey, maple syrup, cornmeal, cheese, and beans in order to offer you a greater variety of foods to enjoy. Recipes are also included each week. Information will be communicated via e-mail and our CSA blog.
A share will feed a couple most of their vegetables for a week or a small family who cooks at home several nights a week.
Typical Items From Specific Weeks In 2010 CSA:
February: Yellow Carrots, Purple Beets, Yukon Gold Potatoes, Honey, Button Mushrooms, Red Potatoes, York Apples, Red Bull Onions
May: Scallions, Radishes, Kale, Broccoli Rabe, Fresh Chive Plant
July: Tomatoes, Corn, Cantelope, Peppers, Beans, Garlic, Beets
October: Stayman Apples, Mutsu Apples, Cabbage, Carrots, Leeks, Broccoli, Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes
Weekly Recipes, Information, Etc.
As a member you will be added to our CSA e-mail list and blog so that you receive weekly updates through your e-mail. At any point you may visit the blog to view or leave comments or recipes, search for ideas, or just hang out. The blog address is:
www.foodmatterscsa.blogspot.com
How Pickups Work and Location of Pickups
Pickup is simple. Each week a reusable bag of produce will be provided. Simply sign for your bag, return your bag from the previous week, and either head out or stay to eat at Food Matters. It is important that you return your bag so that we can reuse them each week.
If You Cannot Pickup
You may have someone else pick up for you and in this case you do not need to communicate anything to us. Just make sure that person signs for you. If no one can pick up we ask that you let us know by Wednesday of that week and you may double up on another week. You must let us know by Wednesday of the week you plan to double up.
Very Important: If you cannot come please do not call or e-mail the day of pickup. In this case your share may not be available. All shares left at the end of the day on Saturday will be donated to a local shelter or family in need. You absolutely may not pick up your share on Sunday. The bags are broken down on Saturday and the produced is repurposed or donated.
Pickup Location
Food Matters on Saturdays from 11am to 11pm.
4906 Brenman Park Drive
Alexandria, VA 22304
703-461-3663
www.foodmattersva.com
Availability of Local Meat, Poultry, and Other Items
Meat, cheese, and/or other items will be available for purchase but some notice will be needed for those orders.
Chickens will always be available. Any order of more than one will require advance notice.
Eggs can also be purchased at the restaurant.
Other items can be purchased from us. Just ask – we might be able to find it!
Benefits of Joining our CSA:
10% off all Food Matters Food Purchases for Members During CSA Season
-Knowing where your food comes from
-Learning about new produce and how to cook it
-Eating seasonally
-Fellowship opportunities with other members
-First priority at future membership
-Supporting a way of life: The number of small farms in the United States has decreased dramatically in the last decade. Please help us preserve an honest and worthy means of making a living. (No Farms, No Food)
-Enhance local economy: By purchasing produce and other items from local growers you are providing stability to your local economy through the support of local businesses.
-Freshness: Locally Grown foods are the freshest you can find anywhere! You will be amazed at the difference in taste that “fresh” makes.
-Save natural resources: Buying locally makes you a valuable link in the process of saving resources such as fossil fuels and packaging materials. We are right here in your community, so the expense of transportation and delivery is kept to a minimum.
What You Need To be Able To Do
-Pickup on Saturdays, most of the 37 weeks
-Cook often
-Understand what it means to eat with the seasons
Still Not Sure? Here Are Some Comments From Members:
“Thanks! We love hearing what is available beforehand, so we can go to the
farmers market or store in the morning and not buy the same stuff, or
can buy another ingredient from the recipes. The variety is nice, too.”
“Thanks for including where/how to store the different vegetables this week. Very useful. I also wanted to say that I tried your recipes for pea shoots and the Asian greens and they were killer! Thanks so much for providing suggestions for how to cook with ingredients we may not be all that familiar with.”
“Please sign me up for this great opportunity to get some great food and support the local farms. Also, thanks for your commitment to the community and Cameron Station. My friends and I here are grateful for Food Matters and enjoy you place very very much.”
“This was my first year with CSA, and I am anxious to do it again next year. Thanks so much for creating a program that lets me support local producers, eat better, get creative with cooking, and remind me of spending great times with my family in the garden when I was a kid.”
“So thank you for the enrichment of my life---with the CSA and with the ongoing commitment to healthy food in the restaurant. I try to drag anyone in that I can!!! I will miss the Saturday adventure.”
“Our involvement with your CSA has been many things to us. Introduction to vegetables we had never tried. An increase in the amount of veg we are eating. Weight loss and better health. Coming to Food Matters each Saturday has been easy and fun. Fun every time we look inside our bag to see exactly what we have. All in all the experience has been great! Sign us up for next year.”
“We've thoroughly enjoyed being members of the CSA. Just finished a delicious dinner of roasted broccoli, curried sweet potatoes, and mashed cauliflower! We definitely would like to participate again.”
Can you tell how important this is to us?
If you know that you'd like to join please plan on making your first payment (but do not pay until confirmed) and respond to christy@foodmattersva.com with the following information:
1. Contact person for your FMCSA Membership Account (one contact
per account, please.)
2. The e-mail address(es) that you'd like to have on the list to
receive information. (If you are sharing the bounty, you
may want to have your FMCSA partner receive communications.)
3. Phone number for the contact person.
4. Choice of payment plan (one, two, or four payments.)
5. How did you find out about us?
How To Quit
We rely on your membership for 37 weeks but if you are sincerely dissatisfied you may request cancellation and we will refund your money. If we are unhappy with any member’s lack of participation we reserve the right to cancel that membership and refund the money for the remaining weeks.
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