Founded in 2002, Clinton Hill Community Supported Agriculture is a non-profit, volunteer-run organization that brings fresh, locally-grown, organic produce to its members through a partnership with Windflower Farms in Valley Falls, NY. Like a magazine subscription, members buy shares at the beginning of the season and receive weekly (summer) or monthly (winter) deliveries of produce directly from the farmer. Through Community Supported Agriculture, the farms get money when they need it most and subscribers get not only the highest quality fruits and vegetables at the best possible price but also a direct relationship to the people that produce the food that they eat. All member must buy a vegetable share, and we also offer fruit, egg, and flower shares, as well as monthly opportunities to order beef, pork, lamb and chicken.

CHCSA is a mixed-income CSA—in order to make healthy produce available to families with a less income, 1/3 of our vegetable shares are made available at a lower price to households living on less than $30,000/year (these shares are subsidized by the other 2/3). We are very proud to be a volunteer-run mixed-income CSA in New York City!

The summer season runs 22 weeks from mid-June to mid-November. Members pick up their shares every Thursday between 5 and 7:30 p.m. at the distribution site. If you are unable to pick up your share, you may send someone to pick it up for you. Shares cannot be held past 7:30 p.m. on Thursday and any leftover produce will be donated to a local food pantry.

CHCSA is a community endeavor so members are expected to help out by volunteering 4 hours per season by setting up, breaking down or supervising the distribution site. We will also need help with outreach and advertising. If you have a special skill that you would like to contribute, we need your participation.

What You Give

Shares in the CHCSA are based on a sliding scale. 2009 prices were:

As of the 2009 season, CHCSA is now accepting food stamps! A check for the administrative fee must be paid separately with the member’s initial installment.

Payment Options

• Members may pay in one lump sum or in three installments
• Due dates are May 1, June 1, and July 1
• The administrative fee must be paid by check or money order, at the beginning of the season. Please contact us to find out about paying with food stamps.

If none of these options work for you, we encourage you to talk the treasurer about setting up a payment plan that does—we are somewhat flexible.

Methods of Payment

• The farm share checks should be made payable to “Windflower Farm.”
• The administrative check should be made payable to “Clinton Hill CSA”—Payment can only be made by check or money order, the CHCSA does not accept cash.

Fruit Share

Fruits include various berries, apples, peaches, plums nectarines and pears. All the fruit is always locally grown and delicious but only the berries are organic. The other fruit is grown using low spray practices—but as organic fruit becomes more available the farmer will include it in the share. The fruit share is only available to members who are buying a vegetable share. Pricing for 2009 fruit shares is available.

Flower Share

Flowers (all organic and local) come in large bouquets that usually stay fresh for over a week. Again, flower shares are only available to members who are buying a vegetable share.Pricing for 2009 flower shares is available.

Egg Share

CHCSA is happy to be offering our popular free-range egg share again. You can order either a dozen or half dozen to be delivered for 22 weeks (starts on the second week of the season). More info on the egg share, including current pricing is available for 2009.

Meat, Cheese, Honey, Jam and More Share

Members have the opportunity to order delicious grass-fed, free-range beef, chicken, lamb, and pork from our consortium of independent meat farmers upstate. You are not locked into a share, but via their website, you can order as much or as little as you’d like and meat will be delivered at least once a month. This year, we can also look forward to homemade sheep’s milk feta cheese and yogurt! No more worries about antibiotics, steroids, and Mad Cow! More info about ordering meat is available for 2009.

Coffee Share

In 2009, we’re also exploring a coffee share in collaboration with Crop to Cup. More info about the coffee share is available for 2009.

What You Get

• Fresh, seasonal, organically grown produce from Windflower Farm for about 23 weeks, from June to November.
• 8-15 different vegetables every week for less money than what you would spend at the grocery store.
• The satisfaction of helping to sustain local agriculture in upstate New York.
• Weekly newsletters on produce preservation, preparation, storage, and recipes.
• A greater sense of community.

Why it’s Important

A recent study of food access in New York City found that neighborhoods like ours are egregiously under-served. While Brooklyn Heights and the Upper East Side have 1 grocery store for every 7,000 residents, Bedford-Stuyvesant has 1 grocery store for every 63,000 residents!

We have all complained about the markets in our neighborhoods, and CHCSA can now provide an alternative. By making our shares affordable and accepting food stamps no one need be left out.