CSA Round Up!

A few of you mentioned that you're interested in a CSA or produce subscription but aren't sure where to look. Back in February, MAP celebrated national CSA Day with an event called SIP & CSA Day. More than 20 of our local producer friends attended to share about their businesses. More than 200 of you attended to find your forever farm. It was great fun. We will definitely do it again next year. In the meantime, we've summarized some info about local CSA farms and local food subscription services for you to check out. 

While we've got your attention, please consider checking out a new group on facebook called, "Find Your Farmer in WNY." This group is an open forum for producers to share what they have to offer and consumers to ask questions. Some great discussions about the benefits of local food have occurred there, too. We are so grateful for the resource that the admins have created. Join in the fun! 

This list is organized into two sections, PRODUCERS and AGGREGATORS. What's the difference? 

Producers are farms and businesses cultivating, raising, and making the products they offer. This can include but is not limited to fruit and vegetable production, animal husbandry (breeding, raising and caring for farm animals), baking, fermenting, preserving. 

Aggregators are businesses that work with producers and wholesalers to build an inventory of products. Aggregators package products sourced from multiple vendors. Aggregators may even work with some of the producers listed here. 

One is not better than the other. There is no "best" share. There are so many configurations available, making it important to read through each business to find the most compatible share for your household, diet, budget, and lifestyle. Remember! Farmers are people!! Farmers are open to your questions. Have a partial payment? Call and ask if they will accept it! Need to pick up near your work? Ask around for different drop off locations. Want to split a share? Lots of CSAs will accommodate that! Now is the time to get to #knowyourfarmer and start eating hyper local. Happy hunting.


This list is limited to producers partnering with MAP and those that participated in SIP & CSA Day. There are definitely more options! Please reply with updates, missing information and farms to add. We will updated accordingly. Contact info is at the end of this post. THANKS!

Producers

Becker Farms and Vizcarra Vineyards is a farm, brewery, and vineyard located in Gasport, that features fruits and vegetables, u-pick patches, and a customizable CSA. You can add Becker Farms baked goods, Vizcarra Vineyards wine, Becker Brewing Company Beer, jams, and fudge to your fruit and vegetable share! Becker Farms offers a small share and a large share. There are pick up locations across Buffalo and Niagara Falls. https://www.beckerfarms.com/

Brewster Street Farm - Journey's End Refugee Agricultural Program is a natural urban oasis operated by Journey's End Refugee Services, where produce is grown exclusively by area refugees taking part in the Green Shoots for New Americans Refugee Agricultural program. Brewster Street's produce is sold at farmer's markets and to local restaurants, and is also offered as an affordable, seasonal CSA running from June to October!

Chestnut Hill Farm is situated in the hills of Boston, NY where the land boasts sprawling open pastures and a beautiful forest of Oak, Hickory, and Beech trees. It is in these woods that they raise our animals. Nature provides a wide variety of forage for the animals including an endless supply of nuts and acorns, a variety of grasses, wild grapes and berries, grubs, in addition to our ground cover of kale, clover, and turnip. They provide shelters throughout the woods and the animals also have constant access to GMO-free feed and running, fresh water. This free-range lifestyle allows animals the freedom to run, play, socialize, and express their natural behaviors which keeps them happy and stress-free. By providing exceptional care to their animals, they are able to offer our customers a superior quality, ethically raised product that everyone can be proud to purchase.

Chestnut Hill Farm currently offers their forest-raised, non-GMO fed pork for purchase by whole or half hog, Cut Collection Box, or as individual retail cuts. Custom orders for restaurants and food services are also available. This season, Chestnut Hill Farm is excited to launch an Organic Poultry line! Details will be available Spring of 2020. https://www.chestnuthillguesthouse.com/

Common Roots Urban Farm is located in Buffalo's Broadway Fillmore Neighborhood with views of the Central Terminal and many prominent church steeples. Josh & Terra grow on a 1/2 acre of revitalized vacant land that is chock full of fruits, veggies & herbs they plant by hand. Their CSA has both weekly & bi-weekly offerings that feature 8-10 veggies per share. They also offer a flower bouquet as an add-on! Common Roots accepts cash, credit, check and EBT for their CSA. More deets here: https://www.commonrootsurbanfarm.com/share-options

Crown Hill Farm is a beautiful historic farm home set on a hill in Eden, NY, with a view of Lake Erie from the front porch and 13-acres surrounded by organic hay fields, woods and a vineyard. Committed to diversity, honoring history and a passion for food, they grow all heirloom vegetables and raise heritage chickens, ducks and geese on pasture.
Crown Hill Farm offers Chicken and Duck Egg CSA opportunities as well as a small number of produce shares. Their produce are all unique heirloom varieties, mindfully grown with no-till/low-till sustainable practices bringing diversity back to your dinner plate. Their eggs are all Soy-Free eggs laid by heritage chickens, ducks and geese, all mindfully raised on pasture. This farm is very excited this season to be adding 2 sizes of Flower CSA Shares from Rambling Bramble at Crown Hill Farm grown by our flower whisperer, Nicole Vescio. Crown Hill Farm is dedicated to mindfully grown community, food, animals, and business with extreme care given to the land, it’s inhabitants & guests. Their purpose is simple: the pleasure of nourishment. Check out their new drop off point at Flat #12 Mushrooms! https://www.crownhillfarm.com/ 

Dirt Rich Farm located originally in East Aurora and now in Springville, is a USDA Certified Organic farm that believes "good food comes from good soil." Growing a wide variety of traditional and heirloom vegetable varieties, this farm has everything you could possibly grow hungry for! In addition to their produce being sold at the Elm Street Bakery, the East Aurora Cooperative Market, and through Fresh Fix, Dirt Rich also offers a seasonal CSA, available for pickup in East Aurora and Springville! Check out their new drop off point at the North Buffalo Farmers Market. http://www.dirtrichcsa.com/

Erba Verde Farms is a pasture-based farm focusing on milk and meat production. They are located in Aurora, NY. Erba Verde offers grass-fed no-grain raw milk shares. They also produce pasture-raised poultry, pork and grass-fed beef. You can pick up a share at 7 different sites including surrounding suburbs and places on both the east and west side of Buffalo. Check out their website for more info OR come and meet them at SIP & CSA Day! https://erbaverdefarms.com/pickup-sites-buffalo-western-ne…/
5 Loaves Farm goes "beyond organic" on Buffalo’s West Side. This urban oasis produces an array of seasonal vegetables. They also tend chickens and honeybees! 5 Loaves Farm provides a 22-week CSA that offers a pay-as-you-can sliding scale payment option AND they accept SNAP! https://5loavesfarm.org/

Flat #12 Mushrooms is an urban farm that produces gourmet mushrooms, year-round, right in the heart of Buffalo. They produce oyster, Lion's Mane, shiitake, and chestnut mushrooms. You may have seen them at the Bidwell Market or tasted their mushrooms at local restaurants. Flat #12 is new to the CSA game. They are offering weekly and bi-weekly shares of 1lb of mushrooms available for pick up at their spot on Chandler St, open daily 12-6pm stocked with items from several local producers! https://www.flat12mushrooms.com/

Native Offerings Farm is a USDA certified organic farm located in Otto, NY, in Cattaraugus County. Fun Fact: Native Offerings is the oldest CSA in Erie County, and has now expanded to offering meat and fruit shares in addition to its traditional summer vegetable share. Better yet, Native Offerings has pickup locations at their farm, on the West Side, in Amherst, and in Orchard Park, making connecting with this incredible farm super easy and convenient! https://nativeofferings.com/

Plato Dale Farm sustainable rural farm located in Arcade, NY. They raise Jersey cows, chickens, and vegetables. Plato Dale offers a market based CSA that allows both the benefits of CSA membership through a CSA buy down account and going to the farmer’s market. They attend the Elmwood-Bidwell Market and the Williamsville Farmer’s Market, mid May through November. New this year, Plato Dale is also offering a 22-week home delivery subscription service with several size/frequency options. https://platodalefarm.com/
Porter Farms CSA is a 3rd generation, certified-organic, family farm celebrating the 25th Anniversary of their CSA in 2020! Pioneers in the local organic movement, the Porter family grows the staples your family needs to eat healthy, organic produce without breaking your budget. They offer both Small and Full shares with Saturday distribution to over 10 sites in the Buffalo area, as well as Friday deliveries to local employers. Let Porter Farms grow for you - food the way nature intended it to be! http://www.porterfarms.org/

Promihttps://www.blogger.com/#sed Land CSA at Oles Family Farm is joining us for SIP & CSA Day! Promised Land CSA has share offerings year-round with six pick up options across WNY including right at the farm in Alden AND right on Mass Ave at MAP! Oles Family Farm offers a diverse veggie share with a fruit share option. You can subscribe weekly or bi-weekly in the summer and bi-weekly or monthly in the winter. They accept cash, check or credit card for their share. More info can be found at https://promisedlandcsa.com/csa/.

Providence Creek Farm is located in Clarence Center. Their farm mission is "to produce healthy, clean and delicious food for our customers." Focusing primarily on pasture-raised meat and eggs, the farm currently offers select beef, poultry, pork, and other assorted meats, including rabbit, goat, lamb, and turkey. Products may be ordered online via their website, or, as a monthly meat CSA!  http://www.providencecreekfarm.com/ 

Sitka Salmon Shares is a collective of fisherman who home-deliver shares of premium, sustainable, wild Alaskan seafood harvest. By joining their community-supported fishery (CSF), you become a member of Sitka's merry small-boat fishing family, distributed from a new WNY hub. Check out their website for details or talk fish in person at SIP & CSA Day tomorrow evening! https://sitkasalmonshares.com/ 

Aggregators

African Heritage Food Co-op is member-owned produce business with retail locations in Buffalo & Niagara Falls as well as mobile locations during the summer. AHFC offers a monthly buy-in program where you can purchase a whole or half box of conventional or organic produce for pick up or delivery. You do not need to be a member to purchase and no subscription is required. https://myahfc.com/shop/

FreshFix is a family owned and operated business that seeks to link the Buffalo community to fresh and local produce year round. Working with area farmers, producers, and distributors, FreshFix curates a weekly produce or meat subscription that meets personalized food needs, delivering each box right to your door! Boxes are customizable and flexible, making this a great option for busy and on-the-go types. https://www.freshfix.com/

George's Produce Market is a small grocery located in Williamsville, NY. They have recently begun offering a weekly produce box of vegetables and fruit. You can buy in using this form.

Produce Peddlers's goal is to help local farms thrive by connecting them directly with restaurants and consumers who are looking for organic, fresh, and local produce. They deliver to your doorstep in less than 72 hours! If you would like to have grocery delivered to your doorstep, order a CSA (community supported agriculture) box here: https://app.producepeddlers.com/

Spoth's Farm Market is a seasonal grocer located in East Amherst. Spoth's is offering a weekly produce box available for weekly curbside pick up at their location. https://spothsfarmmarket.weebly.com/

Sunset Fruit and Vegetable Company is a a locally owned and operated business, specializing in providing fresh produce and other food service products to grocery and convenient stores, restaurants, schools, nursing homes, hospitals and other wholesalers. Sunset is offering a CSA-style package called a "Q-pack" for doorstep deliver. Order online for drop off later in the week. Several configurations available. http://www.sunsetfruitandvegetable.com/

List updates and questions can be emailed to danielle@mass-ave.org.
 
Farmer friends -- we are happy to add your info. Please provide a short paragraph and links to facebook and website (if applicable). Also, if you're interested in a new pick up location, MAP's Farmhouse is a great spot in the City of Buffalo. We are close to downtown, the 190 and 198/33; open evenings; have folks on hand to staff your pick up; and we have plenty of cold storage available. Shoot us an email to expand your CSA today!

Comments