Last year we did something pretty exciting, we purchased a product called CSAware that allows you, our beloved customer and small farm advocate, greater flexibility in two ways: 1) scheduling your involvement in our CSA, and 2) providing more and easier payment options.
So here’s the scoop, there are really 2 main approaches you can take to our CSA: 1) with the intent to commit for the duration of the season (regardless of when you join), or 2) with the intent to ‘see how it goes.’ Let’s dig into each of these approaches a bit deeper and look at what further options each possess and how they differ from one another.
I. The intent to commit for the duration
These are our ‘Full Season’ options. Meaning that once you join, you intend to enjoy our harvests until November. Since not all families or home-cooking habits are the same, we do have 2 options within ‘Full Season;’ they are Weekly and Biweekly. The share size is the same (same amount of fresh produce) the delivery frequency is different. We harvest for you every week (Weekly) or every other week (Biweekly). Essentially, do you feel you need 7 days to finish your produce, or would you prefer 14 days to finish your produce before the next delivery arrives?
You can pay for your ‘Full Season’ option in a few ways: all at once (‘whole season’) or in installations (‘auto-renews’). The all at once option charges you for a full season of boxes. Don’t worry, it also automatically prorates – so if you join after the season has begun, you’ll only be charged for the boxes yet to be delivered. The installation method is a bit different and depends on whether you chose a Weekly or Biweekly delivery. If you choose weekly, the auto-deductions occur every 4 deliveries (4 weeks). If you choose Biweekly, the auto-deductions occur every 2 deliveries (4 weeks). In all instances you are paying for future boxes, not past deliveries.
II. The intent of ‘Let’s see’
This is our Flex Box option. When you choose a Flex Box you are only paying for 1 delivery at a time, which means you can easily cancel your box. You get the same delivery options of Weekly or Biweekly. Depending on what you choose, the auto-deductions happen every week or every 2 weeks. You can certainly choose a Flex Box option with the intent to commit for the duration of the season – you simply won’t cancel your subscription. This option can be the easiest on the budget because you only pay for one box at a time.
III. What all the options have in common
Three things: You can cancel at any time. You can schedule your box for a ‘Vacation Hold’ while you are out of town – which means we won’t harvest for or pack your box. Your delivery location is fixed and cannot be changed – we aren’t heartless, we have options for folks who miss a pick-up, etc.
IV. Other ways the options differ
Price per box and the packaging/delivery fee. Knowing you are getting a box every week for the entire season (Full Season Weekly) is pretty groovy and makes our accounting, materials, and delivery details easy. As such your boxes cost a straight $25/week. Full Season Biweekly adds several layers to our preparations, coordination, and materials needs, therefore those boxes cost $26.75/week. Flex Boxes are like wild horses or unicorns, we are always glad to see them, but they are unpredictable. So we charge $27.25/week for a Flex Box.
The packaging or delivery fee is different per week based on where you pick-up your CSA box. The base cost is $1.25/week because packaging materials cost money. If you pick up off-farm, then we also have to buy reusable bins into which to assemble your gorgeous produce. We tack on an extra dollar for that – it doesn’t fully cover our costs, but it’s better than nothing.
V. What is Market Credit?
Friends, that’s a topic for another post. This one is silly long. Thanks for reading – join our CSA!
Recent Comments