WINDY HILL URBAN FARM
Huber Heights First Urban Grown CSA©
Information for 2013
What is a CSA? Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has
become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer.
Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of “shares” to the public. Typically
the shares consist of a box of produce, but other farm items can be included. Interested
consumers purchase a “share” (aka a “membership” or a “subscription”) and in return
receive a box (or bag or basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming
season. This arrangement creates several rewards for both the farmer and the consumer.
Our WHUF (Windy Hill Urban Farm) CSA is offered in 2 different options (information
on options below). You can contact the farm directly to set up your 2013 subscription at
bren0807@yahoo.com. Please call us at 937-572-5241 if you need more information.
For the 2013 growing season we will be offering 15 shares in our CSA. The first 15 to
sign up and pay will be taken for this year!
Why Buy Local?
Most produce in the US is picked 4 to 7 days before being placed on supermarket
shelves, and is shipped for an average of 1500 miles before being sold. And this is when
taking into account only US grown products! Those distances are substantially longer
when we take into consideration produce imported from Mexico, Asia, Canada, South
America, and other places.
We can only afford to do this now because of the artificially low energy prices that we
currently enjoy, and by externalizing the environmental costs of such a wasteful food
system. We do this also to the detriment of small farmers by subsidizing large scale,
agribusiness-oriented agriculture with government handouts and artificially cheap energy.
Cheap oil will not last forever though. World oil production has already peaked,
according to some estimates, and while demand for energy continues to grow, supply will
soon start dwindling, sending the price of energy through the roof. We'll be forced then to
reevaluate our food systems and place more emphasis on energy efficient agricultural
methods, like smaller-scale organic agriculture, and on local production wherever
possible.
Cheap energy and agricultural subsidies facilitate a type of agriculture that is destroying
and polluting our soils and water, weakening our communities, and concentrating wealth
and power into a few hands. It is also threatening the security of our food systems, as
demonstrated by the continued e-Coli, GMO-contamination, and other health scares that
are often seen nowadays on the news.
These large-scale, agribusiness-oriented food systems are bound to fail on the long term,
sunk by their own unsustainability. But why wait until we're forced by circumstance to
abandon our destructive patterns of consumption? We can start now by buying locally
grown food whenever possible. By doing so you'll be helping preserve the environment,
and you'll be strengthening your community by investing your food dollar close to home.
Only 18 cents of every dollar, when buying at a large supermarket, go to the grower. 82
cents go to various unnecessary middlemen. Cut them out of the picture and buy your
food directly from your local farmer.
Taken from Local Harvest
Windy Hill Urban Farm provides produce grown without chemicals on our
suburban/urban lot of a little more than ¼ acre in Huber Heights, Ohio. We grow a wide
variety of vegetables (which may include salad mix, swiss chard, kale, carrots, beets,
onions, garlic, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, radishes, snow peas, beans, summer squash
and cucumbers) and herbs. Our CSA will run from June 1 to October 26 for a total of 22
weeks. We will be offering 2 options this year. The first will be produce from only our
farm which means it is grown without chemicals and it will be $15.00 per week. The
second option is our box of chemical free produce with add-ons from other local Partner
Farms which may NOT be grown chemical free. This box will offer items that we are
unable to grow because of the amount of land we have. Some of the examples of the
add-ons we may be offering could include sweet corn, melons, asparagus, berries, apples,
peaches, pears, nectarines, winter squash, broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts. This
box will be $20.00 per week.
The shares will be payable on a monthly basis and the shares need to be paid in full by
the following dates.
May 18th for 5 weeks in June for a total of $75.00 or for the larger box $100.00
June 15th for 4 weeks in July for a total of $60.00 or for the larger box $80.00
July 20th for 5 weeks in August for a total of $75.00 or for the larger box $100.00
August 17th for 4 weeks in September for a total of $60.00 or for the larger box $80.00
September 21st for 4 weeks in October for a total of $60.00 or for the larger box $80.00
Remember once you have paid for the month there are NO REFUNDS for that month.
Pickup will be at The Heights Farmers Market on Chambersburg Road in Huber Heights
on Saturday mornings from 10am to 12 noon. We will have our plastic bags for your
shares or bring your own reusable bag each week.
Extra add on items will also be available for purchase during regular market hours.
If you know you are going to be on vacation we will pro rate your CSA for that month
but WE MUST HAVE NOTCE AT THE TIME YOU PURCHASE THAT
MONTHS BOXES! If prior notice is NOT given once the monthly fee is paid you will
not be refunded any money. You may however have another family member or friend
pick up your CSA items while you are on vacation at the designated time or you can
chose to have the box donated to a local needy family of our choice. THERE WILL BE
NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE!
This year we will be taking cash, credit cards and snap payments for purchases.
Terms & Conditions
Supporters of CSA’s actually share in part of the farmer’s risk. That is, they pay in
advance for a portion of the farmer’s total crop. Crops that do well will be abundant in
the share, crops that do less well will be less abundant. Supporters learn to eat locally
and in season and are challenged to cook with what is grown. We will sell produce that
has been grown on our farm or has been labeled with the point of origin from other local
farmers. Once the monthly fee is paid THIS AGREEMENT is a PARTNERSHIP for the
growing season of 2013. By paying into this share you will become a partner or member
for the growing season with Windy Hill Urban Farm. In return Windy Hill Urban Farm
will provide weekly produce for the length of the agreement.
Shares can vary each week due to weather, disease, pests and other natural occurrences.
The shares can start out smaller in quantity at the beginning of the growing season and
then increase in abundance during peak harvest time.
There are no refunds offered for the CSA share regardless of situation. No refunds and
the share holder is responsible for any outstanding payments.
If you are joining our CSA we will need you to fill out the information below and turn in
your first months payment no later than May 18, 2013. Please remember we will only be
offering 15 shares this year so it is first come, first served.
Name:
Address:
Phone Number:
Email:
Signature:
By signing this form I agree to the terms & conditions listed above and I understand
there will be NO REFUNDS for money already paid and there are NO
EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE!