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Originally Posted by stormymater
I am intrigued with the CSA (community supported agriculture) model that has really taken off down here. For an upfront fee (running about $250 - $300 for 16 weeks) people pickup weekly baskets of what is ripe. They share the bounty (& the failures) with the grower. People are mad for the weekly baskets of produce (though I saw friends get baskets over flowing with greens they did not eat or even freeze & then nothing but jalapenos but they signed up again LOL). Seems like maters, peppers, eggplant, squash & basil would do well in this manner.
Having consumer pick up is vital so you aren't schlepping product all over & may result in better insurance coverage for you (selling on your property versus trucking it about).
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CSA memberships that serve Chicago are charging $650 per share for 18 weeks. There used to be one that I really liked which included the option to work the farm. For a slight reduction in costs you took part in weeding, harvesting, soil preparation etc. I loved it because it gave my kids a real taste of what farming was and it was a lot of fun hanging with fellow members as we worked. I wish there was something like that now. I would join in a heartbeat for the social aspect. The produce would be a bonus.