We are happy to announce the opening of CSA membership for the 2021 season!
CSA membership will include 16 weekly (or 8 biweekly) shares of 5-10 varieties of veggies, greens and herbs, with a family-sized package of pork or poultry each week. You can purchase your share up-front or reserve your place with a deposit here. Our 2021 season is set to run from June 6th through September 19th, and options for pickup at the farm, local delivery, or pickup at Nine Pin Cider Works will be available.
With your help, participation, and feedback, we've learned so much over the last year and while the general format of our CSA will remain the same, here are some exciting updates we'd like to share:
- Our 2021 pasture-raised chickens will be processed at at USDA-inspected Morning Star Poultry, which allows us to add chicken pieces to the mix of pork and whole chicken you'll receive with your weekly shares. If you're interested in trying this product out now, we have chicken legs, thighs, wings and boneless/skinless breasts available for purchase now, along with whole broiler and roaster sized birds. There are pros and cons to this new arrangement: while it does increase the cost of processing and adds transportation miles, it will open up a lot more time for us to devote to growing quality and diverse veggies for your enjoyment. We are super psyched about this change!
- Spring and Fall 2021 pork will also be processed at a USDA inspected facility, allowing us to offer individual pork cuts for retail sale or weekly add-ons. Our pastured pigs will be processed at Hilltown Pork in Canaan, NY which is local to us and excitingly, allows us to offer some different products like chorizo and bratwurst. Custom meat processors are incredibly busy now, with most regional operations already booked out through next Winter. This is due is in large part to the stressors of COVID-19 on the industrial meat system and because forward-thinking folks like you are concerned about securing a supply of clean, local food. We owe our thanks to you and your participation in our CSA for helping us have the ability to secure processing dates to get us through next year.
- We were blown away by the increased production and quality of produce that we grew in our new raised bed cropping system. This year we will expand and refine this method to where we grow all veggies and greens on 30" beds, and we will be using a variety of different paper, cloth and organic mulch for better weed suppression. With more rapid turnover and succession plantings through the season, we expect to have a greater abundance and variety of nutrient-dense food to share with CSA members and offer for sale before, during and after the CSA season.
- Finally, we are excited to offer a work-share option, where a limited number of members can contribute their time and skills here on the farm in exchange for a share or portion of a share. One of our members helped out this way in 2020, and we found their contribution utterly invaluable! If you're interested in this type of arrangement for next year, please reach out to Mark directly at (518)817-5135 or via email and we can discuss further.
As always, from the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your support and participation - simply stated: we cannot do this without you. Lets all live and eat well in 2021!
Gratefully Yours,
Mark, Diana, Eva and Noah