Another question for my peeps

[alfiechat]

I know several of you on my flist do farm shares. I will always be greatful to fiannaharpar for pointing me in that direction. I feel that this will help us both try new things and eat healthier

Comments

[jcipa]

I don't, because I'm a single person (can't find someone to share, and it's too much for one) without a car (difficult to pick up the share at all, especially with my work schedule) who can't afford the initial investment.

[mg4h]

I just started this year with the Kretschmann's, and I'm sharing with a bunch of other people. I like the idea of supporting local farms, and with the rise in prices of food, it seemed like an economical thing on average.

Sharing with other people means we're getting a medium, and as our finickiness has complements from the other people, generally everything goes home with someone without a problem.

I still have kale I have to cook somehow. That'll be weird.

[alfiechat]

I actually emailed Kretschmann's and they never responded to me, and Penn's Corner did. Does Kretschmann's allow you to state your preference for veggies and fruits? I know Penns' Corner does not, to my knowledge.

[mg4h]

They do allow preferences, although there's times you'll get what you don't want just because there isn't enough of other things to make up for it. Hence why we got kale - it's been mostly leafy greens so far, plus radishes, onions and strawberries.

I had better luck early in the year calling them in the evening. They are reading and answering email now, and seem to be fine.

[adelheid_p]

I don't currently because I want to find a person or two to share with first. I've seen the amount of veggies you get and that's way too much for me. My husband has a very limited amount of veggies that he will eat and my daughter is no longer living with us.

[cellio]

I'm interested in principle, but the ones I've found that actually bother to answer inquiries, it wasn't cost-effective or distribution was inconvenient. I like the idea of supporting local farmers, but if it's more expensive than the grocery store for less choice, I've got to wonder.

I am interested in suggestions for places that provide reasonable variety at a reasonable price, can do smaller quantities, and will bring it to Squirrel Hill. Bonus points if I get to specify a few likes/dislikes and they're relevant.

[alfiechat]

Penn's corner farms actually has a few pick up sites in sq. Hill. They actually answer emails, at least. I tried Kretschmanns, and with them according to some people you can specify likes and dislikes., but they didn't answer the emails. try pennscorner.com and you can see where their drop sites are. If you end up going with them, use my name and i think i might get a discount of a few bucks on my share.

[house_elf]

In the Squirrel Hill area, Penn's Corner has a location on Woodmont, one on Bartlett, and 2 on Malvern closer to Oakland, and one on Millington in Greenfield.

http://pennscorner.com/content/192

Ditto Alfie, they are awesome about answering email. I usually get responses in under 24 hours.

[cellio]

Thanks to both of you for the pointer. I hadn't heard of them before.

[house_elf]

I was attracted to them living in the boondocks in SE Ohio because it seemed like a safer way to handle farming. Instead of growing all your stuff and taking it to a market, which could have varying results...have people sign up in advance, so you know that you have a market. It sounded like a good idea. When I moved up here again, and I heard fiannaharpar talking about Penn's Corner, and I emailed them immediately. I love having fresh food. My reasons behind it aside from growing up on a farm are that I get to support local farmers, my food doesn't travel as far (hence less gas/diesel fule consumption and less exhaust introduced into the environment on my behalf), and I know where my food comes from. The less steps between my table and the farm the better.

Not only is is a smart choice, it's an eco-friendly choice.