Thank you for joining Oxbow Farm & Conservation Center’s Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program for 20 weeks of local produce, flowers, and connection to your farm! As a Shareholder, you are supporting local agriculture in the Snoqualmie Valley, developing a relationship with our team of dedicated farmers, and sharing in the bounty of a season’s worth of fresh organic food.

Oxbow’s Market Style CSA allows you to select the fresh produce you want the most each week, while also providing Shareholders the opportunity to pick your own fruit and some varieties of seasonal veggies, build your own bouquets, and make our farm yours.

>>> To ensure that the season is safe and successful, Oxbow is dedicated to the following commitments:

1. We offer a diverse array of certified organic fruits, vegetables, flowers, and herbs grown with principles that ensure and maintain the health and wellbeing of the land, watershed, and the people and animals within it. All food available through Oxbow’s CSA is grown without the use of any chemical fertilizers, herbicides, or pesticides. Instead we use cover crops, native plant buffers, and beneficial insects to produce nutrient-dense, responsible food.

2. We work with other local producers to ensure that you get the very best of Washington foods, even if we don’t grow them here on the farm. We only partner with other like-minded producers who share our commitment to organic, responsible land stewardship. In doing so, we can add diversity to our offerings while supporting other small sustainable growers here in Washington State.

3. All Shareholders receive a season’s worth of food below retail value. CSA programs are crucial for farms like ours to have the funds to buy seed and pay staff early in the spring; to show our deep gratitude for supporting Oxbow in this way, Shareholders have received discounts on all vegetables, fruits, and partner products compared to their retail values. The discount is reflected whether you are picking up your weekly Share at Oxbow or at a farmers market.

4. We provide the highest quality produce possible for our CSA Shareholders. Even though you’re getting your food at a discount, we promise that every item will be held to high standards for freshness, taste, and nutritional value.

5. We make our farm a safe and welcoming place for our CSA community. Connecting to the land and seeing exactly where your food is grown is a vital part of our CSA program. We work hard to keep our U-pick rows, fields, and picnic areas maintained, safe, and inviting so that when you’re here each week, you can focus on enjoying your surroundings and time spent with your family and community. Please see our 2020 COVID-19 Safety Addendum regarding visits to the farm.

>>> In order for Oxbow to accomplish the above, Shareholders commit to the following:

1. Share in the rewards of the season with the farmer, but also share in the risks. Community Supported Agriculture is an intimate model where you, the Shareholder, will see the successes and failures of farming that are normally not obvious to the average consumer. In the art of farming, many of the variables necessary for a plentiful harvest (weather, pest and disease problems, etc.) are beyond the farmers’ control. It is possible that some of our planned crops are delayed, in short supply, or not available at all; because of variables, we intentionally grow a diversity of crops and will have surpluses and bounty in other areas to share. We ask for your understanding in the ebb and flow of the season as it progresses.

2. Pick up Shares during allotted pick-up times and/or during the hours of operation of farmers markets. To ensure that we have time to weed future crops, plant fall vegetables, and plan upcoming harvests, we ask that Shareholders only pick up during the designated on-farm time on Wednesdays, or at our two farmers market locations. Your adherence to designated pick-up times will ensure that you get the food you want, that our team stays on top of the farm work to prepare for future plentiful weeks.

3. Stay safe while enjoying Oxbow. We are excited to open up our farm to our CSA Shareholders. While U-picking, selecting food at the Farm Stand, or just enjoying the scenery, we ask that you do your best to be safe. Please respect areas that are off limits, do not climb on vehicles or farm machinery, and do not pick or eat plants that you haven’t been invited to harvest or taste. There is no smoking on Oxbow grounds, and pets of all kinds (with the exception of registered service animals) must remain at home.

4. Responsibly use and monitor your CSA credit for the season. Because our CSA is Market Style, you can spend your credit at the pace you want. We ask that you take responsibility to spend your available CSA funds at the pace you need to get the most out of your CSA – for most people, that’s around $30 a week. We’ll check in throughout the season and let you know if you are not on track to use all your credits during the CSA season, or you may check in to ask us about your balance at any time. We do not provide refunds to Shareholders if there are remaining credits in your account at the end of the season.

>>> Please see the 2020 COVID-19 Addendum for additional information on health & safety guidelines.

We are looking forward to sharing the season with you. Together we can make sure it is a great 20 weeks of local food, vibrant community, and a stronger local food system!

Sincerely,
Kevin Haggerty, Farm & Garden Manager
and the Oxbow Farm Team

To provide our Shareholders with access to safe healthy food, to ensure the health of our farm crew, and in adherence to Washington State and CDC health guidelines, please note the following adjustments to CSA structure and pickup for the 2020 Main Season:

1. At this time, please limit your visit to Oxbow to the Farm Stand and parking area. Plans to open other areas of Oxbow for exploration during the CSA pickup window of 3PM-7PM are being assessed. U-pick will be available in early July, once the farm team is able to ensure that all safety protocol recommended by the state and CDC are in place. We thank you for your patience and will provide further updates shortly!

2. Oxbow staff will handle all produce in the Farm Stand or Farmers Market booth. Shareholders are still free to choose what items and how much produce they’d like from our market display, but Oxbow will handle and bag the items for you.

3. We are not able to bag your items directly into reusable bags, baskets, or containers brought from home. You are welcome to bring them and place your bagged items into them for transport back to your vehicle, but bags/baskets/containers may not cross over the check-out table into the Farm Stand.

4. When harvesting, processing and working the Farm Stand, Oxbow staff wear masks and gloves; out of respect for the health and safety of your fellow shareholders and farmers, we ask that you wear a mask during pickup as well.

5. To maintain safe social distancing, only two Shareholders will be allowed in the on-site Farm Stand or Farmers Market booth at a time, with ordering taking place on one end and checkout happening at the opposite end of the space. We’ll have signage placed to help guide you. Thank you for your patience while we assist other Shareholders!

6. Any questions about mid-season refunds will be handled on a case by case basis. Please reach out if your family has any health and safety concerns that would necessitate a refund.  

If you have questions or are unable to agree to the Farmer-Shareholder Agreement above, please contact us at farmers@oxbow.org. We're happy to help!