Why our model matters: sliding scale stats
Dear friends,
After yet another late-April snow yesterday, today we’ve got a LOT of happy plants and farmers enjoying our first sunny work day in what feels like 3 million years. :) Crossing our fingers that it starts to warm up these next few weeks.
Right now, we’re focused on transplanting thousands of starts from the greenhouse into our fields - so far we’ve planted almost 2 acres out of our 8 acres in production this season. Our hoop houses are also filled with baby lettuces and blooming flowers. Field tulips are slowly but surely getting taller. And our first round of radishes, mizuna and bok choi are getting close! Our team of farmers have been doing an incredible job so far!
Meanwhile, we’re approaching our CSA sign up deadline on May 15th, and welcoming new members every day!
Lots of rock picking to do! The freeze and thaw of the water in the ground each winter causes rocks to surface again and again no matter how much we rock pick each year. Just one of the many inspirations for our name.
The enthusiasm and support for local food is an encouraging trend coming out of this brutal time.
Because of COVID, we’ve shifted our plans for this season to meet an increased demand for our CSA, which will hopefully balance out the significant decrease in our restaurant wholesales outlets.
With our increased capacity, that means we still have about 30% of our CSA spots available! We expect that this year might be the first year we actually sell out of CSA shares. Please secure yours today before you miss the opportunity!
Are you thinking about becoming a member this season? Hit reply with your questions, or register today right here.
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If you’ve already joined us, can you think of a neighbor or friend who might be interested in sourcing delicious local food this season? There are so many people looking for a resource like this - but we rely on word of mouth to help them find us.
We love our CSA community, and are excited to grow food for you all!
Kind of impossible to capture how beautiful it is in here!
Unsurprisingly, another change we’ve seen this season is an even higher percentage of folks needing financial assistance and coming in on the “lower income” end of our sliding scale - we are glad people know we are here to provide affordable access to nourishing food.
If you’re curious, here’s the current breakdown:
52% of our current CSA members are low-income, which means their share is fully or partially subsidized.
30% are middle-income, which means they are paying our baseline/market price point for their share.
18% are at our upper income levels, which means a portion of their purchase goes towards their lower-income neighbors’ shares.
We rely on the generous contributions of our community to cover our increased demand for lower-income shares. Higher payments on the CSA sliding scale and donations ensure we can grow food for all of our community, regardless of income.
Thank you to everyone who is chipping in to help us take care of each other.
We’ve received such an outpouring of support - over 70 individuals have contributed via our sliding scale and/or Food Access Fund since mid-February!
Maggie was able to get off the computer and onto the tractor last week, yay!
And yet . . .we still have a growing wait list and daunting unmet need in our communities.
It’s important to acknowledge that income/wealth disparities and resulting food insecurity have been around long before the pandemic, and will most certainly continue on the other side of it.
At the same time, COVID is amplifying and exacerbating the problem in a big way. Just one example: despite increased need, a shocking 37% of food banks have closed because of the danger for volunteers (many 65+).
Having been involved in food access work since the beginning of our farm (and in our jobs prior), we’re grateful to already have systems in place to respond to this need quickly as neighbors and community members.
If you are able, please join us in making sure our neighbors can count on nourishing food to eat this season.
Any amount makes an impact: $33 provides a week of fresh produce to a household in need. $132 feeds them for a full month, and $660 a whole season!
Donations are tax-deductible.
That’s what we’ve got for today! Sending lots of love and solidarity to all of you. Let us know if you have any questions about CSA, food access or anything else you’d like to connect about.
Stay well,
Maggie, D., Amanda, Mika, Kyle, Rica, Amara and Hannah
Rock Steady Farm & Flowers
P.S. Our new Rock Steady totes arrived!! Get yours here.