We've got week 1 of the CSA under our belts, and that feels good! We received great feedback and expressions of awe at the giant heads of lettuce. If they overwhelmed you, rest assured we grow some medium-sized and even mini heads too! Both our Tuesday and Friday harvest days were very wet. We look forward to drier days to come...
With our new Harvie system, we've had to make significant changes to the flow of our harvest days. We no longer line up empty bins and fill them with all the same contents. We have built a new "pack line" (see photo) with every possible item lined up in a specific order. Empty bins slide down the line to be filled with the contents according to the label on the box. This takes some care and a bit more time, so to increase efficiency we've also re-located and re-configured our wash station. These are good changes, and we really enjoyed the process of creating your customized box this week! Please know that making swaps or additions to your share does not increase our workload or result in wasted product - we harvest just what we need to fill the boxes and we trust that a customized box will result in greater satisfaction and less waste in your kitchen too.
This week we've added cheese to the "extras" available for purchase. We love Little Qualicum's yummy cheeses and so we've brought in 2 of our favourites - their Brie and Jill, as well as a yummy new one - a smoked raw-milk cheese (like a smoked cheddar). Treat yourself to some cheese this week, and if you have a favourite from Little Qualicum you'd like to see us offer, drop us a line!
This is week 2, which means that for some of our customers on the every-other-week pickup schedule, this will be your first box! So, what follows is a quick overview of the pickup procedure - essential reading for the bi-weekly folk, and good review for everyone else.
- Bring your own box or bag to transfer your veggies to, if possible. We don't have enough rubbermaid bins to send them all home with you. If you forget your container, do take ours home, but bring it back please - don't accumulate boxes at home!
- Clean or sanitize your hands prior to picking up. The farmers are washing hands a lot these days, and we'd like to ask you to do so also. At the farm, we have a handwashing sink set up before you enter the barn, and at the off-farm pickups, we've provided a spray bottle with hand sanitizer.
- Enter the barn by the south-facing entrance, and follow the flow to the west-facing exit. One-way traffic only!
- Observe 2m physical distancing. If there is already someone picking up, hang back and give them space. At the farm, we ask you to take your full bin from the "shelf" and empty the contents at the tables provided near the exit door. Leave your bin stacked tidily on the carts near the door.
That is all! We hope you are getting a hang of using Harvie and loving the veggies. We are pleased to receive your feedback and happy to answer any questions you may have about the farm or your CSA experience.
Now I'm off to plant...
Paul
