Help me find a CSA pickup in Charlotte, NC

April 19, 2016 3:57 PM

After this metafilter post, I'd like to sign up for a CSA in Charlotte, NC.

I have a roommate but we mostly make our own meals so I only need enough for one (I'm hoping not to go beyond a $30/week budget- no, my roommate would not be interested in going in on it with me).

My google skills have been surprisingly weak on this- but I'm also nervous that I'm just too late to sign up for something. I won't be traveling too much, so I can pick up any day of the week and I would prefer a longer commitment than shorter. I live in NoDa but work by Sharon Amity and Ablemarle Rd. I don't want to go too much further north or south of those to pick up. (I've been to the NoDa farmer's market but I'd like more produce and the simplicity of a box of food.) It would be great if it included a mix of fruits and veggies, but I'm not looking for any particular items.

Any suggestions? Where should I even be looking? It seems that lots of the farmers seem to be strong on farming and weak on websites.

posted by raccoon409 to Food & Drink (4 answers total)

Best answer: Bush-N-Vine has a Ballantyne pickup as well as Rock Hill, and Shady Creek Farm has a delivery service as well as Belmont and at the farm (Dallas, NC) pick ups. I'm further south than you so these are closer to me, but it's a start. We use Shady Creek Farm personally and I buy extra produce from Bush N Vine when I visit friends in York.
posted by julie_of_the_jungle at 4:09 PM on April 19, 2016

We did a half-share at Poplar Ridge Farm in Waxhaw a couple years ago and shared with another family with a SAHM. The farm would deliver to their house and we'd pick up from their garage. We were matched through the farm and it worked out great, so maybe that's an option? We're not doing it any more but they had a lot of delivery and pick-up locations across the southern part of town.

Are you in the NoDa Facebook group? Might be worth asking there.
posted by Sweetie Darling at 5:43 PM on April 19, 2016

Backyard Produce ships year-round and includes produce from southern Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. During times of the year when there is less available, they supplement with organic products from further afield. For example, this week's one-person box (which is $25) is:

non-GMO Local Strawberries - 1 pound
Local Organic Spring Onions - 1 bunch
non-GMO Romaine Lettuce - 1 bunch
Mixed Apples - 2 count
Organic Carrots - ~ 1 pound
non-GMO Local Green Kale - 1 bunch

So, the strawberries, onions, and kale come from local farmers. The lettuce, apples, and carrots come from elsewhere but are organic - typically similar products to what you can find at a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's.

You can read about their farmers on their website. They also have a great system where you can take the variety box or choose items based on a point system. A one-person subscription is 40 points. You typically get more stuff if you just go for the variety box though, but it can be a good idea to pick and choose if, for example, you ABSOLUTELY CANNOT STAND TO GET ANOTHER SWEET POTATO (ahem). If you make no choice by Saturdays, you get the variety box for the following week.
posted by chainsofreedom at 6:08 PM on April 19, 2016

Response by poster: Thanks all for the suggestions! I ended up getting a late summer CSA with bush-n-vine which will hopefully then get me on the sign-up for next year. They had the best options for 1 person as well as a long (well, multiple) seasons.
posted by raccoon409 at 6:32 PM on April 29, 2016