Bread's First CSA Share!

Bread for the City has often written about our wish list and the generous volunteers and contributors that make our work possible, but sometimes there is someone who gives BFC and our clients something we didn’t even know we needed. 


Take, for example, Martha Byers. A District resident, Ms. Byers was initially interested in purchasing a Community Supported Agriculture [CSA] share herself but realized it was an unrealistic addition to her lifestyle. CSA shares provide, for a yearly fee, fresh produce from local, often organic farms, which share-holders pick up weekly at a designated site. Although Ms. Byers loved the idea of supporting local farmers while supplementing her groceries with fresh fruits and vegetables, “I don’t cook (much) and my work schedule would make it a hardship to pick up the stuff anyway.” 


Instead, Ms. Byers donated her share to Bread for the City, providing our clients with another option for their fruits and veggies in a unique contribution to our food security efforts. “As much as it’s [in] the media about CSAs, and the nutrition needed for undeserved areas, I thought I could...contribute to a concrete need,” said Ms. Byers. 


Marie Hoffman, a regular BFC volunteer who works as a front desk administrator in the medical clinic, picks up the CSA weekly and reports the donation often brings in even more produce than planned. The CSA pickup site sometimes provide an extra share to non-profits towards the end of the pick-up period, and BFC has been the benefactor of this practice several times. In an email to Ms. Byers, Ms. Hoffman said, “the produce-- vegetables and fruits-- are amazing. And we always manage to receive at least one more full share: your goodwill is contagious, you see!”


Thank you Martha Byers and Marie Hoffman for your creative contributions of Bread for the City clients!


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Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. To find a CSA near you, please visit http://www.localharvest.org/csa/.