Doing your weekly vege shop at the on-site Kelmarna shop is a wonderful way to stock up on your fresh, organic, and seasonal produce whilst supporting the farm’s essential work. But did you know Kelmarna also runs a weekly veggie box subscription? Known as Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), this subscription system is a partnership-based farming model where community members (you) and farmers (us) work together to grow and share food.
With this model CSA members commit money up-front for a harvest season (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter) and in return receive a box of fresh produce each week during that season.
There are many benefits to becoming a member of a CSA:
🥬You are supporting local agriculture and reducing your carbon footprint
🥬You’ll experience the joy of knowing exactly where your food comes from and who grows it
🥬You’ll receive regular portions of super fresh, local, seasonal, organic produce
🥬You will experience the diverse flavours of each season, expanding your culinary horizons
🥬Community members connect more closely with their food and each other
In terms of community as a whole, advantages include:
🥬Minimal marketing and sales time meaning farmers can focus more on growing food
🥬No production food waste or packaging waste
🥬Farms secure funding for the season ahead
🥬Shared risk and shared reward
🥬Hopefully increased awareness of the importance of knowing the source of your food and encourage the development of other CSAs across New Zealand
So, in a nutshell, the model provides essential community and financial support for the farm to plan ahead and operate in confidence, growing food for you with the accepted risk as well as rewards that each season may offer. This means that when conditions are good, everyone receives a bountiful harvest, and in the case of bad weather or crop failure, that everyone receives a little less
Our autumn vege box is in full swing but there is still the chance to sign up for the rest of the season on a quid pro quo basis. This season’s weekly box runs until the end of May and is likely to include carrots, beetroot, turnips, radishes, spring onions, kale, silverbeet, perpetual spinach, broccoli, kohlrabi, squash, potatoes, microgreens, seasonal fruit, seasonal herbs, and of course, our famous Kelmarna salad!
Boxes come in at a $40 per week paid upfront ($520 for 13 weeks) but please do email us if this is not possible for you and we can discuss a monthly payment plan.
Customer testimonials:
"My partner and I are really enjoying curating our meals around the vegetables. They are now the stars of our meals rather than the meat, so thank you!"
"Since joining the CSA scheme I eat a wider variety of vegetables and eat more seasonally. I love visiting the farm each week to collect my box as it's a wonderful opportunity to pause and enjoy the beauty of the garden each week and notice the changing seasons".
"I love being part of the veggie CSA as it helps me believe a different world is possible, I'm not alone going against the whole food chain system! Thanks guys, you are the best"
Please visit kelmarna.co.nz/csa for more info and FAQs
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