Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Community Supported Agriculture?
A: Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a rapidly growing
movement in which members of the community pledge their
support to a small-scale, local farmer with whom all of the risks,
and rewards of food production are shared. The movement began
in Japan, Germany and Switzerland in the early 1960s as a
response to issues of food safety and urbanization. In 1965,
Japanese mothers who were concerned about food safety from
imported and conventionally grown produce joined forces with
farmers fearing the paving over of their farmland to create the first
CSA programs, called “Teikei” in Japanese. The early CSA communities in Europe were inspired by the work of Rudolph Steiner as more socially equitable and economically sound farming/community partnerships. The movement spread from Germany to the East Coast of the U.S. in 1984 via two different German biodynamic farmers, Trauger Groh who started Temple-Wilton Community Farm in New Hampshire and Jan Vender Tuin who teamed up with Robyn Van En to start the Great Barrington CSA in Massachusetts. Today, a quarter century later, there are over 12,500 CSA farms across the U.S. with the largest being Capay Valley’s “Farm Fresh To You” (right here in the Sacramento area) with 13,000 subscribers.
CSA is good for members of the community. With a CSA membership, you know who your farmer is, where your food comes from, and (most importantly) how your food is grown. A CSA membership allows us to deliver fresh, wholesome, nutritious food to you the same day it was harvested using the minimum amount of packaging and fuel. As a member of Singing Frogs Farm, you will have opportunities to visit the farm and meet the farmers, meet other members of the Singing Frogs Farm CSA community, and learn more about sustainable agriculture through our Farm Tours, farm events and weekly newsletters.
CSA is good for the farmers too! We receive a steady source of income from your membership as well as the benefit of a guaranteed market for our produce - typically a big risk in small-scale farming. But best of all, we cut out the middle person so that you get your produce for lower than retail costs and we sell it to you for higher than wholesale prices. It’s a win-win solution! Also, as a CSA farm, we are able to act upon our crazy desire to grow literally hundreds of different crops all throughout the year, rather than focusing on just a dozen crops for markets or wholesale!
Q: How much does it cost?
A: Each Classic box of produce costs $26 and each Family box costs $33.50. Overall, we tend to give out about 30% more food than this money would buy at a supermarket or farmers’ market; ie: you will have a roughly 30% savings by joining our CSA (higher savings if you shop at WholePaycheck) when averaged out over the season!
Q: How much food do I get in my box?
A: Each box offers 7 to 12 different items, usually with 1 to 2 herbs and one fruit. The food in the box is what ever is at the peak of harvest in that season. Some boxes might be fairly light weight and full of hearty greens while other boxes will be quite heavy from pounds of tomatoes, melons, or winter squash. On our “CSA Info” page on the left hand column, we have 5 sample boxes from all the seasons during the year. Every week is different with some weeks having a tremendous harvest and other weeks a more slender harvest. Some people complain of too much food while others have finished off the box by the weekend. Everyone’s eating habits and coking styles is different, but we assure you: you will eat a lot more veggies when you join our CSA - and your body will thank you for it!
Q: Can I choose what I get?
A: We are a CSA farm, and the best of what we grow each week is harvested and packaged for you in your CSA box. We can not customize CSA boxes and still keep our prices low. However, at many (but not all) drop sites and at the farm, we do keep “Trade Baskets” stocked with a few extra items. If there is something in your box that you can’t or won’t eat, please feel free to leave it in the trade box and pick another item instead.
Q: How much of the produce in your boxes is from your farm?
A: We are building a strong network of local (Sonoma County) farms that we trust and rely on to bring us high quality produce. All of these farms are certified organic, and we will tell you when a fruit or veggy is from one of these farms. For the past 3 years, between 90% and 100% of the produce in our CSA boxes has been grown here on our farm. As we face greater demand for fruit, we have had to find other local farms to supply fruit for us (we do grow our own blueberries and strawberries among other things). Occasionally we have a number of simultaneous harvest losses that we can’t overcome. In these instances we will buy extra produce from these trusted, local, certified organic farms.
Q: Are you certified organic?
A: We are not certified organic. Organic farming allows for the use of toxic organic pesticides, organic herbicides, and organic fungicides. While they don’t cause harm to us humans, these organic sprays are very detrimental to pollinators, especially bees, as well as to the entire community of beneficial insects in an ecosystem. Organic pesticides still kill indiscriminately, just like conventional pesticides! We practice what is often termed “Beyond Organic.” We meet or exceed all organic standards, but we also strive to create a healthy, vibrant, natural ecosystem that is strong, biodiverse, and resilient... and that also happens to produce food for us humans! For more information on organic farming and our farming practices, join us for one of our fun, inspirational and informative Farm Tours (see Farm Events).
Q: Do you provide recipes?
A: We love providing recipes with every newsletter. Our recipes focus on the new and unusual foods in that week’s box. We hope to post our recipes on-line soon, but in the meantime, some of our members have found it very useful to keep a binder or folder of our newsletters as an ever growing recipe book by Singing Frogs Farm!
Q: What do I do if I’m on vacation?
A: Since our food keeps growing regardless of the lives of us humans, your box will still be prepared for you. You may choose to have a friend or neighbor pick up your box while you are gone - in this case please let us know who it is and what date(s) they will be claiming your box. Otherwise, we will donate your food to the Food Bank, to our farm workers, or to our Girlie Girls.
Q: What happens if I forget to pick my box up?
A: At most drop sites and at the farm, you may still pick your box up the following day, Thursday. However, we can no longer guarantee the freshness of your produce. If you do pick your box up late on a Thursday, it is a good idea to let all your leafy greens soak in cold sink water for 20 minutes to an hour before washing, drying, and storing them. If you still forget to pick your box up by the end of Thursday, your food will either be donated to the Food Bank, to our farm workers, or to our Girlie Girls.
Q: How can I become a drop-site host?
A: We request that a minimum of 5 CSA boxes be dropped at any given drop site. This means that if you can gather two or more neighbors, co-workers or close friends together with yourself, you may contact us about the possibility of setting up a drop site. We currently are accepting new drop sites in Sebastopol, Graton and Santa Rosa.
Q: What if I forget to return my empty box?
A: Don’t go out of your way to bring boxes to your drop site or the farm - it’s not worth your time or gas. However, our boxes cost us upwards of $4 each, so please do remember to bring ALL of your boxes with you next time.
Q: How can I pay? Can I pay by credit card?
A: Currently, we accept checks. We do not accept credit cards. However, we are hoping to install an on-line payment system in the near future.
Q: Can I visit the farm?
A: As a CSA member, you are welcome to visit the farm. Please do call ahead if it is not a CSA pick-up day as we would like to be present and available to welcome you.
Q: Can I buy a gift membership for someone else?
A: Yes, you are more than welcome to do so. We will work with you to arrange all of the details for your “Gift Membership.”
Q: Are you open to the public?
A: No, we are not. We are a for-profit business operating on private property. That said, if you call Farmer Paul and ask him if you can stop by, he has a very hard time saying “No.” However, we do offer Farm Tours and other special events which will give you ample opportunity to enjoy the farm and learn about our land use management in a very in-depth and informative way.
Q: I am not planning on becoming a member of your farm. Can I still stop by your farm to buy some produce and eggs?
A: Yes, but please call first. Our farm is not “open to the public” but if we have extra produce or eggs available we would be happy to have you stop by. Please call Farmer Paul (707-536-7171) before heading out to the farm. Thanks!
Q: Can I sign up for a trial box?
A: Yes, you may arrange for a 4 week, classic-sized trial box at a cost of $110.
