theMOVE will be hosting the 3rd annual Farm Share Fair on Thursday, March 1, at the Argenziano School, Union Square, 290 Washington St, in Somerville.
The fair will bring together more than 20 local farms and meat producers to provide the public with information about their weekly farm share options. The fair allows consumers to meet the farmers who grow their food, and it greatly simplifies the process of finding farm share information, which is otherwise very difficult. Additionally, the fair helps new consumers to sign up for a farm share before they sell out, as many do by early spring.
In 2010 and 2011, the Farm Share Fair brought out 150 to 250 attendees each. These fairs have helped to significantly increase the market for farm shares in Metro Boston.
Admission is free. The venue is T-accessible via bus. There will be an area with kids’ activities, and a parents workshop on making baby food using natural ingredients. The fair will feature farm share options for low-income households, including use of SNAP/EBT.
A farm share – otherwise known as a CSA (community supported agriculture) share – is a weekly box of locally produced vegetables or meats, delivered by producers to centralized pickup locations throughout Greater Boston. Shareholders purchase their shares before the season begins — which helps farmers when they need financial support the most, for crop startup costs. A typical summer vegetable share lasts 20 weeks from June through October, and costs $30 per week for 12-15 pounds of produce ($2-2.50 per pound). theMOVE (www.getoutma.org) is a grassroots community organization which organizes reflective farm-volunteer workdays for diverse urban groups across Metro Boston, to connect participants hands-on with fresh food, and with the labor and the land that sustain us.
Rafiki Bistro, Craigie on Main, and Stone Hearth Pizza will be financially sponsoring the event. The event will also be co-sponsored by the Northeast Organic Farm Association – Massachusetts, Somerville Climate Action, Groundwork Somerville, the Somerville Community Health Agenda, and Union Square Main Streets.