Hello Farm Friends!

I hope this letter finds you all well!   The sole purpose of this newsletter is to let everyone know that… we will be starting the 2023 CSA sign-up tomorrow (Thursday), December 15th, for existing members. This newsletter is just a heads up, and sign-up will not be occurring through our website like past years.  Tomorrow, anyone who has been a member during the past two seasons, and has had an account in our CSA software, will receive an email with a link to sign up.  This includes all the people who were on the wait list last year but could not get a share. If you receive this newsletter and you were not a member last year, you will need to wait until January 1st to sign up.

For now, the important thing to know is that, tomorrow you should be on the lookout for another email from us with the subject “CSA Signup”.  This email will include the link you need to sign up. Please do not share this link with anyone else, as that undermines the purpose of the early registration.   One tip to make sure you receive our emails is to verify that 2bearfarm@gmail.com is in your primary contacts, that way it doesn’t’ go to a promotions or spam folder.  

Our CSA software last year was expensive and really frustrating from a functionality standpoint, so we decided to ditch it.  This will change the way that you sign up this year.  We are going back to a online sign-up form using Google Docs.   The simple form does not require you setting up an account, and it will allow you to quickly complete your signup up. Basically, you’ll enter your name and email, select a share size, and then you’ll need to read and agree to a handful of rules for the CSA so you know what you’re getting into. 

It is important to us to be able to provide fresh, healthy, organic food to anyone in our community who desire it, not only people further up the socio-economic ladder. So, in spite of inflation and rising costs, we will be holding the price of our shares the same as last year. And to further keep costs down, we no longer want to absorb credit card payment processing fees as a farm, as it ultimately increases the price of the CSA. So, we highly encourage you to go old school and pay by personal check or counter check (if you no longer have a check book). For those who really enjoy the convenience of online payment, we will offer the option to pay via Venmo, although you will have to pay the 1.9% processing fee.  

And one last note…..There is a huge demand in our valley for fresh, local, organic food, but the numbers of farmers is declining, which is increasing the pressure on existing farms as well as the speed in which CSA sells out. Last year we had a waiting list of over 40 people for our CSA who never got into the program, including previous members who waited too long to sign up.  My point being that the good old days of waiting until April to sign-up for a share are likely over, and I want you to know that now while there is a way for you to ensure that you don’t miss out.  That said, we don’t know how many members will not renew, so we need to open the CSA to new members at some point.  

To find balance in this, we are going to open the CSA up to existing members for the next two weeks.  If you sign up in that time frame, you are guaranteed a spot.   Then, on January 1st, we will open it up to everyone.  You can still signup up for a share after January 1st, but there is the risk that the longer you wait, eventually the music stops when we hit our quota, and those who have waited too long will be without a chair (or share).  

I can’t believe we’re talking about the 2023 season already!

Happy winter,

Todd