The following is a list of some of the frequently asked questions or potential situations that you may encounter when joining our CSA that we have compiled over several year. Some of this information comes directly from the CSA Member Agreement that you should read before signing up for a share.

1. What will my CSA share be packaged in?

We deliver CSA subscriptions in insulated tote bags that we have pre-packed for you. The cost of these bags are not included in your subscription price and remain the property of the farm. It is your responsibility to return the empty (and wiped clean would be nice!) bag to your CSA pick up location each week when you are picking up your subsequent week’s share. If you lose a bag, you will be charged a $10 replacement fee.

Although we will do our best to keep packaging to a minimum, the use of plastic to package up greens and some other crops is unavoidable. If you are dead set against plastic, you can provide us with reusable produce bags. We use paper bags where possible for items like potatoes.

2. How do I manage my Farmigo account?
   You can sign into your Farmigo account here: https://csa.farmigo.com/account/sideroadfarm

• Check your balance
• Customize your CSA share for the week, add on extra items, delete items, etc.
• Put your deliveries on hold
• Check your payment history

4. I am going on vacation…what do I do with my share for the week? You can either log in to Farmigo and put your share on hold for the week or gift your share to a friend/family member/neighbour. It is up to you to remember to manage this. The farmers can not be responsible for managing your account and remembering to update it week to week for you.
   

8. Darn! I can’t pick up my share today. What do I do? You are responsible for arranging to pick up your produce. If you are unable to pick up your share, please try to have a friend or neighbour pick it up for you. As a last resort, please text Amy at 705.446.5503 if something comes up on the day and you can’t pick up the share. If something happens and you really can’t get to it we usually end up giving it to the host of the CSA pick up location.
9. I’d really like some extra _____________ (eggs, salad, flowers, etc.) this week. How do I get those delivered? CSA customers have access to our online web-store, which features add-ons such as eggs, extra greens and flowers. Items in the web-store are subject to availability and will depend on the season. We  also feature products from other producers on the web store.
10. Do I need to wash the veggies? This is completely up to you. We do wash some of the produce, particularly if it comes out of the field really dirty. We always triple wash and then dry salad greens, and we will usually rinse the dirt off beets, carrots, and parsnips. Some other veggies like potatoes, we’ll bag up fairly dirty because they will last in storage much longer that way. We don’t use any chemicals (pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides) on our produce, and we take food safety very seriously…however, the choice to wash or not wash up to you.
    
    
11. I had an issue with quality this week. What should I do?  We certainly never want you to receive items that are low quality so we feel it’s really important that you pass on any comments or feedback if a CSA item is not up to snuff. Your feedback may clue us into a need to change our management of certain crops. Bottom line is, if you’re ever unhappy with something, (which we really hope doesn’t happen), tell us. We will credit your account for the item in question.

12. I have a balance left over at the end of the season. Can I put it towards the next? When you put your CSA on hold the credits that would have been used towards your share that week will roll over (for up to 2 weeks…if you put your share on hold beyond you can not accumulate more credits during the season). We allow you full flexibility to add extra veggies on to your share in subsequent weeks. If you do not use that balance before the end of the season we unfortunately cannot roll that over to the next season. It is up to you to remember to use your balance before the end of the season.
13. Can we come see the farm? We love showing off our work and we certainly hope that all of you feel welcome to come visit the farm and meet us (perhaps for the first time) at some point during the season. That being said, farm tours can be time consuming and difficult to fit into a busy summer schedule. If you would like to come for a tour please get in touch ahead of time and we’ll try to sort something out. You’re welcome to volunteer too if you like. Remember the CSA farm tour/potluck in October. It’s a good time to come out as well.
14. How do I customize my CSA share?
    Members can customize their vegetable boxes based on what is available from the farm any given week. In order to do so, you will need to log into Farmigo using your account information. then:
    1. Delete the “farmers’ choice box” from your order
    2. Build your custom share using the vegetables listed online for the week

    The online CSA store is open between:
    Tuesday at 9 am – Thursday at 11 pm for Saturday pick ups
    Friday at 9 am – Sunday at 11 pm for Tuesday pick ups
    

    The Farmers Choice Box is worth 33 credits weekly (the equivalent of $33). If you spend more than your initial CSA payment, then you will start to rack up a balance, which can be paid by cheque, cash or e-transfer at your convenience (you don’t need to pay weekly…feel free to rack up a balance). Items available for credit include veggies, eggs and flowers.