CSA FAQ

Please give us a call at 207-564-0563 or email us at ripleyfarm@gmail.com if you have any other questions.

• What if I go out of town and can’t pick up my share one week?
  
  The best option is to ask a friend to pick up your share and use it in their home. You can also login to your CSA member account and put your box on "hold" to be donated to a food pantry of our choice for that one week only.  Unfortunately, it is not possible to give you extra on other weeks or to give you a refund for the weeks you miss.  If we harvest your share and you do not come to get it, we will donate it to a food pantry of our choice.
  
   
• I’m concerned about getting too much produce. How big is your share?
  
  Everyone has different eating habits. In general, our share is perfect for couples and families who eat meals at home with veggie side dishes, salads, and snacks. Our share is not excessive, but it is a lot of vegetables for people who do not have time to cook. If your diet relies very heavily on vegetables, you will definitely not have too many veggies!  Our share provides our members a consistant amount of produce week to week. There are between 6-9 items each week throughout the season with a nice mix of greens, snacking veggies and cooking items.
  
  The point of a CSA for many of our families IS for them to eat more veggies.  We offer many resources to help you make this work and train you the way of CSA eating. 
  
   
• I’m not familiar with all the vegetables that you grow. How will I know how to use something when I get it in the share?
  
  For the most part, our share consists of popular vegetables that everyone is familiar with and loves. We grow some varieties of vegetables that are uncommon in grocery stores but very popular with our customers who try them at Farmers Market. You will occasionally receive one of these less common treats in your share.
  
  The weekly newsletter always includes a list of what veggies are in the share that week along with cooking tips, storage tips, and recipes. Many members find this information very helpful to identify and use all of the produce they receive in their share. Check out our Vegetable Gallery of Recipes for pictures of our vegetables and recipes! 
  
   
• While at the farm, is it alright to walk around and visit the PYO gardens and fields? 
  
  Yes! On Wednesday during pick up you’re welcome to walk around the farm. We may have farm animals in fences and a perimeter fence around the fields. These fences are electrified and will shock you if you touch them. Please don’t touch!
  
   
• I like to can tomatoes and freeze green beans. Do you sell bulk amounts for processing separate from the share?
  
  Yes! We always have extra produce such as tomatoes, beans, beets, big zucchini, etc. available for bulk orders.  We handle these types of orders through our Preorder Buying club weekly email list.
  
   
• Do you sell a half-share?
  
  No, although we understand the concerns potential members, especially single people, might have about the size of the share. We encourage members to sign up with someone they can split the share with if they think it may be too much for them alone.  Or try our veggies through our Preorder Buying Club
  
   
• Do we get to pick what’s in the box?
  
  No, we pick what goes in your box, guaranteeing a selection of what’s at its very best from our fields each week. If you want to be able to choose certain items each week, then our Preorder Buying Club, which allows you to pick and choose from a list of available veggies for pick up on Wednesdays, may be a better option for you than CSA.
  
   
• Do you sell Winter Shares or storage vegetables for the winter?
  
  Yes, during the winter season, our root cellar is full of the farm’s fall harvest ready for our Winter CSA and orders throughout the months of November-March. 
  
   
• What does CSA mean?
  
  CSA means Community Supported Agriculture. Although there are lots of different models of CSAs, they all share in common a pre-paid financial commitment from community members to support local agriculture. This commitment provides an important guarantee to both parties.
  
   
• I am really busy. How much time does it take to pick up?
  
  No more than 2-3 minutes. You can drive right up to our walk-in cooler where you’ll find your box waiting for you to pick up and load into your vehicle. Then you leave your box from the week before and you’re off, in less time than it takes to buy even one item at the grocery store.
  
   
• What if I forget to return my empty box from the week before when I pick up my share?
  
  Return it the following week. We want to eventually get all of your boxes back and appreciate it if you can do you best to return them every week, although we know that sometimes people forget.