If you've found this blog because of my CSA posts, you might be interested in the idea but haven't made the leap yet. If you're still on the fence, check out this post on why you should make that leap.
If you're ready, but haven't actually signed up yet, the most comprehensive resource for CSAs in western PA is probably Edible Allegheny's 2014 CSA Guide (co-sponsored by the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture).
But I want to list out a few that we subscribe to now, in the past or might in the future - the ones I follow more closely and on social media. These farms and co-ops often share a wealth of information on produce and farming practices, as well as special events or programs in the area - even recipes! Many of them still have sign-ups available, so check their sites and social media for more details as well as pick-up locations.
Penn's Corner Farm Alliance
- Various CSA options (watch Thursday Next Gen House posts this season for what we've received so far)
- Online farm stand (if you want CSA items without the commitment of a share), including meat, eggs and dairy
- Combination of organic, certified naturally grown and natural/sustainable
- Twitter: @pennscorner
- Various CSA options, including meat shares (see Next Gen House posts tagged CSA and meat for details on what we received last year)
- All USDA-certified organic
- Twitter: @ClarRvrOrganics
- Various CSA options, all USDA-certified organic
- Farmer's Market CSA option, with the ability to purchase credits for the farmer's market
- Twitter:
@edibleearthfarm Facebook - Instagram: @edibleearthfarm
- Various CSA options, all USDA-certified organic
- Agriculture Supported Community program for low-income families
- Unique partnership with Bocktown Beer and Grill restaurants
- Various CSA options, all USDA-certified organic (definitely sold out for 2014, but keep them on your list)
- Twitter: @conoverfarm
If you have more to add to the list that you have experience with, please leave a comment - I'm always excited to learn about new ones!
We've been Kretschmann CSA members for years, but this year I'm going down to a half share and adding a half share from Penn's Corner and a meat share from Clarion River. I'm excited to see how these CSA's are different from Kretschmann's and hoping this will provide a bit more variety. I'd never heard of the others you mentioned. Thanks for bringing those to my attention. I've also planted a wider variety of vegetables in my garden this year -if we can keep the groundhogs and bunnies at bay, the challenge will be trying to eat them all!
ReplyDeleteWe did Kretschmann's for several years too and always loved it, but we were looking for more variety, so we tried Penn's Corner in the winter and loved it so much we went for a full season share. We loved the meat share from Clarion River last year and we're still eating it up!
DeleteWe keep the chickens at bay by using mesh fencing with little posts. Not quite as lovely to look at as gardens without the "fencing" but it helps us keep the fruits of our labors!
Northwest PA Growers Association (http://www.nwpagrowers.com) has great options for further north. I was a member there for 2 years before joining Penn's Corner (mainly because I could pick up at my workplace). NWPA shares were always HUGE with a nice variety and good prices. You could also do a farmstore option, beef & chicken shares, & egg shares. They've been adding more delivery options I think as far south (relative to Butler County) as Wexford.
ReplyDeleteNorthwest PA Growers sounds like an awesome co-op - particularly since I grew up in Mercer County and it's nice to know that farms there can use the CSA model viably too, even without being next to a major metropolitan area.
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