CSA FAQ

Questions about Elmwood Stock Farm CSA shares:

• How much food will I get?

It’s difficult to quantify an exact amount of food as far as pounds of potatoes or number of tomatoes because each week is different throughout the season, and each season differs, too, based on how well our crops are doing.

We offer three sizes of vegetable shares that are delivered weekly during the summer season, two sizes that are delivered every two weeks during fall, and one share size in the winter. Please read the descriptions of each to determine what size is right for you, but know that you can adjust your share size each week through our online customization. Also check out newsletters from past CSA seasons for an idea of what has traditionally been in each share.

• What if I don’t like a vegetable that’s offered?

A few days before your weekly delivery, log-in to our website to view and swap items planned for you share. Simply remove an item from your share, replace it with a favorite instead, or add extras of something else. You can customize your share each week of the season prior to the farm’s harvest.

On-farm pickup offers you the most choice in customizing your own vegetable share. Pick out your own vegetables from the bins of produce harvested for CSA, see the size of the bell peppers you may want to stuff, choose the ripeness of your tomatoes as only you know what day you want to use them, and grab extra bags of salad mix for that family picnic on the weekend.

• What is the sign-up deadline?

There is no formal deadline to sign up for a CSA share, but once the shares sell out, they sell out. It’s possible we’ll have room to accept members after the CSA season has begun, but that is not always the case. Contact the farm to inquire about a prorated price if there is room to sign up after the season has started.

• Can I cancel if I decide CSA isn’t for me?

When you join our CSA, you are signing a contract to be a partner of the farm for that season. If you are unsure of whether a CSA is right for you, you might start with our Mini Share. You can scale up from there during the season, but you cannot scale down from a larger share. You might also consider splitting a share with a friend, family member or coworker.

We realize our CSA offers a lot of food, and we try to help you with that quantity through the recipes and advice provided in our weekly newsletter (both provided in print in your share and offered online). If there is some way we can help you manage and enjoy your CSA share, please let us know. Elmwood Stock Farm staff members love talking about food.

In the event that you really cannot continue to receive your CSA share, our CSA agreement allows for you to transfer your share to another person.

• Where are your pickup locations?

You can choose from more than a dozen pickup locations in Georgetown, Lexington, Versailles, Frankfort, Louisville and Cincinnati. Find the current list on the About CSA page of our website, along with pickup days and times.

We also offer home delivery for an additional fee in Georgetown, Midway and Lexington.

• Can I change my pickup location?

You can change your pickup location yourself from week to week if it is on the same day. If you need to change to a different day and location during the season (for example, if you move from one area of Lexington to another), let us know and we can make the change for you as your log-in window to swap your share will change also. We can do this once for you, but we are not able to offer this from week to week.

• Can I order meat, eggs or other vegetables to pick up with my CSA share?

Certainly! When you log-in our veggie swap page to customize your share, you also have the option to add on extra eggs, meats or pantry items. If you want items currently not listed online, contact us at least 48 hours before your CSA pickup, and we can take your credit card number over the phone and send your special order along with your CSA share.

• Can I split my CSA share with someone else?

You can divide up your CSA share however you’d like. We are unable to prepackage CSA shares to be split, but we do have some customers who will set up a system between themselves. For some, one customer picks up and keeps the CSA share on odd-numbered weeks and another on even-numbered weeks. For others, the customers pick up the share together and divide up what’s in the box.

• What if I can’t pick up my CSA share this week?

In advance, log-in to your veggie swap account and cancel your share. We’ll carry over the value of your share until the next time (up to $60 can be carried over) and then you can use that value to add extra items to your share in future weeks.

Another option is to send a friend to pick up your share for you, as it is a good way to introduce the concept to friends or neighbors. If you, or your friend, do not collect your share, it will be donated elsewhere. 

• Can I host a CSA pickup at my home/workplace?

Elmwood Stock Farm offers many CSA drop-offs in Lexington, Georgetown, Versailles, Frankfort, Louisville, and Cincinnati. If CSA-customer demand is there, we welcome additional sites. You need at least 10 people to commit to pick up their CSA shares at your location to open a new site. Please contact us well before the start of the season to discuss this option.

• Do you offer CSA work-trades?

You might know of other farms that ask their CSA members to be involved in the production of their food, but Elmwood Stock Farm does not have such a requirement; however, if you have an item or service that you think we might be interested in, please contact us.

• My friend gets a rebate from his employer for belonging to a CSA. How do I get that deal?

Ask your human-resources department to contact us for information about employers that offer organic-vegetable CSA rebates as part of their health and wellness program. We are happy to help set up a voucher program or something as simple as a employer-sponsored discount on CSA shares. 

Questions about Elmwood Stock Farm’s offerings:

• Does Elmwood Stock Farm grow all of the items in the CSA share?

You bet! Everything we offer is produced on our sixth-generation family farm in Scott County, Ky., under USDA organic standards.

• Are any of the items in the CSA share GMOs?

Everything we produce at Elmwood Stock Farm is certified organic, meaning it is produced with respect to the land and the environment; without the use of genetically modified seeds or substances; and without synthetic, chemical fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, insecticides, fungicides or other -cides. Read more about our farming philosophy, and browse our blog.

• Can I see how this food is produced before I sign on?

As a busy working farm, Elmwood Stock Farm is not able to offer individual tours, though we do welcome groups interested in farming, gardening, responsible food choices, the environment and nature to set up farm tours with us. We offer regularly scheduled farm tours throughout the year, to which CSA members receive free or discount admission.