In grocery stores these days it's tough to always know 1. where your food was grown,2. who picked it,
3. what pesticides and herbicides may have been involved,
4. whether or not it was genetically modified, and
5. how long it has been in a truck driving to you.
All these problems are solved by joining a CSA, or community supported agriculture farm. The brilliance of a CSA is that you subscribe to "your" farm. You meet your farmer/s and pay them ahead of time to work their magic throughout the growing season.
My new CSA this year is First Blossom Farm in Leicester, http://www.buyappalachian.org/listing/first-blossom-farm a few miles west of my house, and here is my farmer, Veronica Sotolongo. She grows a huge variety of fruits, vegetables and herbs and raises chickens to boot, so for an extra share price, I will get eggs each week too! She brings them to a farmers market close to me every week May-November. Another bonus is that my weekly bushel of produce from Veronica promises to save quite a bit off the grocery store price and puts superior-quality produce in my hands that hasn't travelled thousands of miles.
Veronica prides herself on her low impact approach which means doing most everything by hand and using as few fossil fuels as possible. Wherever you are there are CSAs in business now. In the Asheville area alone there are over 50 with farmers markets every day throughout the growing season. Don't miss out. Help small farmers keep us healthy! Support your local small farmer today and reap the rewards.
