CSA Week 10 -- Working

Moments before distribution begins, the farmer
and volunteer team review lists while CSA
members begin to arrive.

Week 10 of Ditmas Park CSA was my week to work distributing the weekly share of vegetables and fruit (weeee! fruit), so finally some pics of the process.

When I tell people how I get my food it is usually in a few steps. I tell them my food comes from a community sponsored agriculture group which I am a member, that it picks up one day a week, in the same spot in Ditmas Park, that the food is determined by my farm, and that it is local and mostly organic. This is a big peach of a mouthful, and I am not sure people can visualize all these details. After all, most people get to choose what they eat when they eat from a grocery store.

Meet Jorge, my farmer, and his home-grown eggplant friend!

I was assigned the early shift. I don't remember feeling hot, but it was in the upper 80's with a ton of humidity. I meet up with the other 2 volunteers, and one administrator in front of Third Root, on Marlborough Road and Cortelyou Road. We wait for Jorge to arrive in his van of earthly goodness. Jorge drives about 3 hours from Pennsylvania. We unload the tubs, boxes, and bags of produce, dividing them onto 2 sides of the tables. The 2 tables are organized with 2 scales, lists of members (includes whether they get half or full shares, and if they get eggs), and quantity and weight of vegetables to be given to each member.

Its the job of the volunteers to put each amount of vegetables into boxes and bags for members as they arrive, using that important list. There are often a few choices (kale, chard, collards or broccoli), but most things are pre-determined. Some of the produce can be pre-bagged making the situation faster e.g. 1.25 lbs of fruit or 1 lb green and wax beans into bags. Beans are tricky to bag up! At busy times a line may form, but people chat about recipes and neighborhoody-news. Its wonderful to see the same friendly faces week to week. We all belong to the I heart veggies and farms club. Not to mention the priceless benefit of meeting, greeting, and chumming around with the man who personally grows and picks what ends up on my plate. Jorge is a celebrity on our block!

Big time tomato week! 5 lbs of red, yellow, and
mixed heirlooms. I eat them for breakfast mixed
with peaches olive oil and balsamic.

Mid-August is high veggie time, with a large variety. My mind works slowly in the heat, and there are now so many options for meals. Here is a list of this week's distribution:

1 lb small onions
1 bunch kale
1.25 lb red potatoes
5 lb tomatoes
1 nectarine
2 peaches
2 pears
1 large bunch of sage
2 green/yellow/red peppers
1 eggplant
.8 lbs hot peppers
(which is around 20, and cause for a spicy week)
2 cucumbers
1 zucchini
4 ears of corn
1 lb yellow wax beans