Information for New & Prospective Members
Thanks for your interest in the bulk buying arrangement, we have named Veggie Co-op. This is our 12th year of operation. We are excited about getting organized for the season and meeting new people. Our “old” members have until May 1st to let us know if they are returning this season. There is usually around a 30% drop-out rate, so we expect there will be space. Get your name on the waiting list by filling in your application and e-mailing it to organicfarm@nl.rogers.com. Do not send any payments until you hear from us. If we have your application and space is available, you can send the membership payments when we let you know there is a space. It will only take a few days to get things in place after that.
Before you make a decision, it is important to know there is an over all increase of 15% in the annual membership fee over last year. The price increases will be concentrated in high labour items. Items where we were able to cover cost will not have a price increase. When we started the CSA, it was more or less a hobby. We both had other incomes. We loved what we were doing. We enjoyed living and working on the farm and like most farmers used our off farm income to supplement farm costs, year after year. Now we are at a turning point. Melba is retired and divides her time between the farm operation and charity work in the community. Mike still works quarter time at Memorial. teaching and working with graduate students. Now that he has “retired,” he spends mornings and week-ends on the farm. Our son, Louis, has been the mainstay of the farm, along with several other core employees and some temporary, part-time workers. We struggle to be able to pay our senior employees what they deserve and cover our expenses. Now, we have a significant debt load due and there is no more flexible income. This year, we are putting in a plan to increase revenue, not only through the Veggie Coop, but all aspects of the operation. At the same time, we are trying to increase production and sales in popular items such as basil and tomatoes. Our CSA members are partners to these strategies to sustain organic farming in our region.
Labour is our highest cost. Since we started in 1986, most of our workers, except seasonal part-timers have been hired at a rate higher than minimum wage. People who return each year are provided an hourly increase. Even so, most of our employees earn less than they would at a call centre. As of April lst, minimum wage increased to $8.00, with ll.5% employer costs. This does not include assessments from the Worker’s Compensation /Board and other annual costs, which increase every year. However, in spite of the fact that The Organic Farm is not yet recovering costs, we are pleased to offer cost-shared Health Benefits to our permanent employees and to contribute to a cost shared RRSP plan.
There are other costs beyond our control. We take pride in buying many of our supplies locally, but because are organic, many of our inputs such as seeds, one type of compost used to make compost tea, fish emulsion and other soil amendments come in by truck. Transportation costs are up from 20 to 70%. Local suppliers also pass along their increased transportation costs.
We are not apologizing for the price increase, but we wish things were less challenging. Only 15% of the vegetables consumed in our province are grown here; we all understand the environmental costs as well as the impact this has on the local economy. When you join the Veggie Co-op, you are making an investment to a model of eco-farming, which reduces green house gases, conserves water and promotes healthy life styles for our employees, families and community. As a bonus, you get healthy, fresh picked vegetables and herbs delivered to you on a regular basis. You also have the opportunity to become part of an ever expanding network of people who share current events, recipes and generally care about each other in the same way they care about the environment.
Our members frequently bring family and guests to visit the farm over the season. We especially welcome children of all ages. They are also welcome to volunteer with or without their children. Each year, the farm hosts various Cooking Classes and Chef Groups from the College of North Carolina, conservation and eco-systems programs, garden clubs and people involved in community gardens. Last season around 250 people visited the farm on Open Farm Day and we hosted a number of field trips involving primary, elementary and preschool children.
The 2008 Membership Options are outlined below along with the answers to frequently asked questions. This is followed by the 2008 Price List. Each week, the items put into the veggie bag are itemized in a “packing slip.” Much like a receipt from a any store. Early in the season, the items in the bags will not add up to the total weekly allocation. However, over time, when vegetables become plentiful later in the season, members receive more than the weekly allowance.
If you have any questions, about any aspect of the Veggie Coop, we are only an e-mail or phone call away.
Thanks you.
Melba and Mike Rabinowitz, Co-Owners
Phone: (709) 895-2884; E-mail: organicfarm@nl.rogers.com
2008 MEMBERSHIP OPTIONS:
1. Smaller Bag at $23.00 per week for a total of $345.00 for the 15 week season.
2. Larger Bag at $32.00 per week for a total of $480.00 for the 15 week season.
PICK-UP TIMES AND PLACES:
1. Smaller Bag Pick-up: Monday, 6 p.m., Science Building - Quad Parking Lot
2. Larger Bag Pick-up: Wednesday, 6 p.m., Science Building - Quad Parking Lot
Fill out and return your membership application form either by e-mail or by post. To submit your membership application, please use one of the following methods:
Print out the PDF version
Email the MS Word version
or use the Online Form!
Please provide e-mail and phone information for all those you are sharing with to make it easier for us to find someone to pick up the veggies on nights you may forget. Also, all participants will be on our e-mail list. The Veggie Coop will have its own pages on Organic Farm Website for dialogue, recipes, farm notes and building the veggie coop extended community, www.theorganicfarm.net
2008 Season Pricelist for Veggie Coop and Private Customers
| Arugula | $2.50/ small bag; $4.00/ large bag |
| Artichokes | $2.00 - 3.00 depending on size |
| Beans | $6.00/500g |
| Beets/ winter | $1.25/500g |
| Beets/ novelty | $.75 ea. (white, golden, candy strip) |
| Black currants | $5.00/cup |
| Broccoli | $3.00/500g |
| Brussels sprouts | $3.50/500g or $5.50/stalk |
| Brussels Sprout Tops | $1.50 |
| Cabbage | $1.25/500g |
| Carrots (baby) | $2.00/bag |
| Carrots (bunch) | $2.50/bunch |
| Cauliflower | $2.50/500g |
| Celery | $2.00/stalk |
| Chard | $3.00/bag |
| Chinese cabbage | $2.50/500g |
| Chinese Radish | $1.75/500g |
| Corn | $0.75 per ear |
| Corn Salad | $3.00/small bag |
| Cucumbers(reg.) | $0.85/cucumber |
| Cucumbers(English) | $1.50/small; $2.50/large |
| Elephant Garlic | $11.00/500g |
| Eggplant | $3.50/500g |
| Fava Beans | $5.00/500g |
| Fennel Roots | $2.50 each |
| Garlic (regular) | $1.25/bulb or $7.00/500g if plentiful |
| Garlic Scapes | $1.00 for 4 scapes |
| Gooseberries | $7.00/quart |
| Green Onions | $1.50 - 2.00 bunch/ depending on size |
| Joi (Bok) Choy | $1.75/500g |
| Kohlrabi | $2.00 each |
| Leeks | $1.50 each |
| Lettuce | $1.50 - $3.00 per head depending on size |
| Lettuce, washed | $4.00/250g bag |
| Mescaline Mix | $6.50/250g bag |
| Micro Greens | $6.50/100g bag |
| Onions/winter | $1.00 - 1.65 each depending on size |
| Oriental Greens | $4.50/250g bag |
| Parsnip | $2.50/500g |
| Peas (edible pod) | $9.50/500g |
| Peas (shelling) | $5.00/500g |
| Peppers - sweet | $0.50 to 1.50 each depending on size |
| Peppers - hot | $0.25 to 1.50 each depending on size |
| Pak choi | $1.50- 2.50 depending on size |
| Potatoes-fingerling | $3.00/500g if plentiful |
| Potatoes-regular | $1.75/500g if plentiful |
| Pumpkin | $1.25/500g |
| Radicchio | $2.00/small bag; $4.00/large bag; $5.00/head |
| Radish (regular) | $1.25/bunch |
| Raspberries | $4.00/pint |
| Rhubarb | $1.50/500g |
| Salad Mix | $6.50/ 250g bag |
| Shallots | $7.00/500g |
| Spinach | $6.00/500g |
| Sprouts (living) | $5.00/quart |
| Summer Squash | $1.50/500g |
| Tatsoi | $1.75 each |
| Tomatoes (cherry) | $4.50/pint |
| Tomatoes (Latah) | $3.00/pint |
| Tomatoes(greenhouse) | $4.00/500g |
| Tomatoes(green) | $3.00/500g |
| Tomatillo | $4.00/500g |
| Turnip | $1.00/500g |
| Winter Squash | $1.75/500g |
| Zucchini | $1.50/500g |
| Herbs: | $2.00 bunch |
| Herb Bouquet: | $2.50 |
| Basil | $1.75/25g; $5.00/100g bag; $22.00/500g |
Common Questions
How Do I pay the subscription, or does it matter?
You can pay the total subscription:
- One check -dated June 15th;
- Two checks - dated June 15th and August 15th.
- Four checks - dated June 15th, July 15th, August 15th and September 15th.
Checks are the preferred form of payment. Make checks payable to: The Organic Farm. If this is not feasible, please contact Mike Rabinowitz to make a plan.
Can I share a membership?
Often a membership is shared, with two or three families. In this case, we request that the name of the "founding" member appears somewhere on each of the check(s). Please provide the names, e-mail addresses and phone numbers of all the sharing members so we can send e-mails to all members and contact a sharing partner if a member forgets to pick up their bags.
What if the subscription costs is a barrier?
The Organic Farm is able to provide some work/share arrangements along with the full-pay membership option. In fact, one of our best employees in 2007, started out working a couple of days a week to earn her Veggie Co-op bag. Transportation to/from the farm can also be a barrier; however, there may be some tasks such as helping out at the farmer’s market in St. John’s. E-mail us and let’s start a conversation.
What about holidays and Additional Weeks?
Members may take as many as three weeks of holiday during the season and receive replacements at the end of the season. The membership subscription is still 15 weeks. Your weekly bags is suspended when you are on holiday. A replacement bag is added at the end of the season in what would be Weeks 16, 17 and 18. When you are planning a holiday, you need to let us know as far in advance as possible and no later than the Friday before you holiday. An e-mail or a written note passed in at pick-up time is better than verbal information. Members, who miss fewer than three weeks can purchase one or more addition week at the end of the season at the usual weekly price if quantities are sufficient.
Do I have to pick up at MUN and When does the season start?
Vegetables can be picked up on the evening your bags are ready in the farm chill room in Portugal Cove or held in the chill room as per your instructions. Routines will be established for dealing with various situations and contact information will be collected for each member to ensure that reminders are in place. The start of the season is weather dependent. We will let you know when the season begins one to two weeks before deliveries start.
How do I transport the vegetables?
Each member will purchase two bags from the farm. One stays with the member, the other at the farm. The empty is swapped at pick-up for the filled bag. This makes packing and handling the vegetables efficient. Returning members will be using the heavy canvas bags they purchased in past years. We are exploring new sources of bags for new members. It appears there may be less expensive and equally durable bags available. This will be an additional cost, perhaps around ten dollars. We will have this firmed up before our new members join.