Upcoming CSA Fair Helps People Eat Local

An upcoming fair can help narrow down the choices.

At the Fellenz Family Farm, there is always something growing. "Every week is a little different because every week there are different things in season," says Farmer Andy Fellenz.

Starting on Saturday, he will be selling his skills. He's asking people to sign up for his CSA. It stand for Community Supported Agriculture. It's a chance for farmers to sell crops directly to people in the community. "Consumers become a member of the CSA and that means they receive a weekly share of sometimes produce, herbs, or fruits and it's really beneficial for the farmer it ensures they have a consumer market," says CSA Fair Coordinator Nicole Dennis.

Some upcoming community fairs will allow people to meet the farmers involved in the program. They can then select which CSA they'd like to join. Come spring, boxes of fruits and vegetables will be delivered to drop off sites around the area once a week.

"Every week they are getting access to the freshest local affordable food," says Dennis. Fellenz is always up for a new challenge. He says his customers have also helped him find new crops. "They're like I had this when I was a kid....can you grow that? And that's how we end up growing a lot of what we grow."

One of the things he's most proud of is the relationships he has cultivated with the families who buy his crops. "For me that's one of the things that makes the CSA's so much fun. It's the community aspect of it and I have a chance every week to meet with my members and get a sense of what's working with their share, and what isn't working."

If you would like to learn more about CSA's and meet the farmers involved, there are two opportunities coming up. The first is Saturday, February 16th from 1-3 at the Bausch and Lomb Public Library on South Avenue in Rochester. The second is in Canadaigua on February 24th from 2-4 at the NY Wine and Culinary Center on South Main Street.