For Current CSA Members
Information for current-season CSA members will be posted here soon; please check back. Information for new CSA members is posted in the section below... if you are a returning member it might do you good to review that information as well!
For New CSA Members
Thank you for joining our CSA! We are thrilled to be farming for you!! There is a bit of an art to the CSA experience... Here are some tips to help get you started. Please don't hesitate to contact us by email or phone if you have any questions.
At the Pickup SiteOur pickup sites are hosted by awesome supporters of the local food system, usually at their homes. Please respect their privacy by only picking up during normal waking hours (generally 7 am to 8 pm, unless other times were specified for your site.)
If you see your site host while picking up, please DO say hi and thank them! However, our site hosts are NOT employees of the farm and we don't want to make them work too hard. If you have questions while picking up your share, please do NOT knock on the site host's door... they will not be able to help you. If something from your share is missing or you have other questions while picking up, please contact the farm (text messages to Sarah's phone will get fastest response). The "Pickup Window"The "Pickup Window" is not a drive-through chicken joint... it's the window of time in which you'll need to pick up your shares with each delivery.
You can pick up as early as noon on the delivery Thursday (remember, it's every *other* week), and as late as noon the next day (Friday). The idea is to give members who cannot pick up during the day one "after work" opportunity and one "before work" opportunity. For your safety (i.e. to preserve cold temperatures) the pickup window ends promptly at noon on Friday. Items left in the coolers after that time are donated to the site host and you will be charged full price for them. We unfortunately cannot schedule alternate pickup arrangements for members who forget to pick up in time. And unless the site host is a personal friend who owes you a favor, site hosts cannot hold items for members in their fridge. If in Doubt...A good rule of thumb is "If in doubt, throw it out." If you ever find yourself with food safety questions about your chickens or eggs, we ALWAYS prefer that you freeze or discard the item in question and contact us. It might feel like an expensive waste, but it's really nothing compared to the costs to your family and the farm if a food safety situation arises. (Knock wood, we've never had such a situation, but questions do come up from time to time and we're always happy to answer them and replace the product, even if it turns out that nothing's actually wrong with it.)
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Retrieving Your Share ItemsAt your pickup site, you will find chickens and eggs in separate ice chests. Though all items are packaged for "retail," it is a good idea to bring your own plastic grocery bag from home to carry your chicken(s).
Near the coolers you will also find a checklist attached to a clipboard with a pen. Next to your name on the list, you will find the number of chicken and egg shares for which you are signed up. As you pick up, please cross off your egg shares and write in the weight(s) of whatever chicken(s) you select (weights are written on the bags). VERY IMPORTANT: TAKE ONLY THE ITEMS LISTED NEXT TO YOUR NAME ON THE CHECKLIST, EVEN IF YOU DON'T SEE YOUR NAME OR DISAGREE WITH WHAT IS LISTED FOR YOU. The checklist reflects the farm's records of all CSA sign-ups, and we pack the ice chests only with what is on the list. If only one chicken is listed by your name, but you take two, another member at your site will come up short. This can very quickly snowball into a situation that affects everyone who picks up after you at the site. If something is amiss with the checklist when you pick up, please contact the farm. Especially if you *text Sarah's phone*, it may be possible to resolve while you're still on-site. Sending a FriendRather than schedule a Vacation Hold when they go out of town, some of our members like to have a friend pick up their shares for them. This is a great thing to do, but every year we have confusion at at least one of the pickup sites because somebody's friend didn't understand the checklist procedure and took the wrong thing.
If you send your friend to pick up for you, it is your responsibility to educate them about the pickup procedures. You are responsible for the cost of your friend's mistakes, which may include reimbursing another member for items mistakenly taken; paying for items that should have been picked up but weren't; paying for a larger chicken than what you actually received if your friend forgets to write down the weight; etc. |
Handling & Cooking - ChickensMost people are not used to dealing with chickens as fresh as what you'll be receiving in your CSA shares! Because the chickens are harvested the day prior to delivery, they need at least 1 more day to "rest" before cooking or the meat will be noticeably tough (soups OK).
A good rule of thumb we like to use for chicken shelf life is "Freeze it in 5." The actual shelf life is probably a bit longer, but you'll never go wrong following this rule. You should cook or freeze your chickens within 5 days of pickup. To start off, we recommend roasting your chicken with nothing more than a little oil (or butter), pepper and salt. Really taste the chicken! Then you can get fancy (if you're not yet totally addicted to the amazing flavor and 3-minute prep time). The chickens are packed in ice made from potable water, in sanitized ice chests. It's not for drinking, but ice melt water does not pose a hazard to your chicken. Chicken "drippings" should not occur, but if present these DO pose a health risk (just like with grocery store raw chicken products) and you should wash your hands and any other surfaces that come into contact with it. Chickens should not be transported with vegetables that will be consumed raw. Handling & Cooking - EggsYour CSA egg shares will also be very fresh, laid within 1-3 days of delivery. You can eat them immediately, but for hard-boiling it's best to wait a few days as very fresh eggs don't peel well.
Official shelf-life for your eggs is 30 days (or 29 days by the time you pick up), since they are packed the night before delivery. We think they are best in the first week, but even in the second week they are most likely fresher than what you'll find at the grocery store. To start off we recommend soft-boiling or gentle frying (whites firm, yolks runny) with just pepper and salt. Really taste the eggs! Then you can get into fancy omelettes, etc. Eggs are washed the night before delivery, and the USDA requires all eggs to be sold with a "Keep Refrigerated" instruction. There is an allowed window of 4 days in which the eggs can be stored at moderate (but not refrigerated) temperatures prior to refrigeration. Many cultures (and farmers and homesteaders) store eggs at room temperature in spite of the US Government's infinite wisdom, but we've found that they really do stay fresher if stored in your fridge. Raw eggs... Our advice has to be not to eat them raw. If you're going to anyway, please keep in mind basic food safety principles. Bacteria grow over time, and exponentially so at warmer temperatures. The best egg to eat raw is a very fresh one from clean-living chickens, that has always been stored at cold temperatures. |
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