Contract for Fall 2010 Membership
How Calhoun's CSA Works
See Photos from the 2009-10 Season 
Article about CSA from The Calhoun Chronicle, Winter 2010

History of Calhoun's CSA

Calhoun's CSA was started in the fall of 2009 by the Parents Association as an experiment in community supported agriculture. More than 50 parents and staff paid for a share in the limited "membership," entitling them to pick up at school bags of pre-fresh, locally grown produce every week for 9-10 weeks.  The first season was a huge success! Today, the program has expanded to 75 memberships, extended to families, staff, alumnae/i and former parents.

What is a CSA?

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a partnership of commitment between a farm and a community of supporters which provides a direct link between the production of food and its food. CSAs help to support family farms while providing city dwellers with access to high quality, locally grown, affordable produce. A CSA farmer sells shares in his/her farm’s upcoming harvest to individuals, families or institutions. The share price goes toward the cost of growing and distributing a season’s worth of produce and paying the farmer a living wage.  

Each week, from September through December, the CSA farmer delivers the week’s share to a distribution site where members collect their food. Typically, each week’s share includes a variety of vegetables, enough for an average family. Over the course of a season members get at least 40 different types of vegetables, usually organic, always fresh-picked and changing with the seasons.

Partnering with Paisley Farm

Calhoun's partnership is with Paisley Farm. Established in 1989, Paisley Farm is owned and operated by Mike Kokas and Jan Greer in Tivoli, New York, about two hours north of the city. Paisley Farm is part of a larger business that Mike and Jan own and run called Upstate Farms, a grower and distributer of specialty produce for high end restaurants in New York City. They have been working with eminent chefs at fine restaurants including Picholine, the Daniel Boulud restaurants and Angelica’s Kitchen, supplying each with the variety and quality of produce and fruit that meets their very high requirements.