Aug 8, 2023 - Business
6 unique farm boxes in the New Orleans area
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Monica's Okra World is a vendor at several farmers markets in New Orleans. Photo: Courtesy of Crescent City Farmers Market
CSAs — or community-supported agriculture programs — from local farms saw a boom in membership during the pandemic as supply-chain disruptions had consumers looking for alternatives to local grocery stores.
- The concept, which started with Black farmers in the 1960s-era South, is alive and well in New Orleans today.
The idea is simple: You pay a set price, either weekly or ahead of a growing season, and you collect your locally grown, farm-fresh produce on a set schedule. Some growers even offer home delivery.
- Other business models, like Top Box and Laughing Buddha, serve as a portal to connect buyers with farmers but are not traditional CSAs.
Below are the local businesses in the New Orleans area that sell farm boxes.
Key:
- 🧑🌾 Single-box option.
- 🏠 Home-delivery option.
- 🥚 Eggs available.
- 🍞 Bread available.
River Queen Greens 🧑🌾 🥚
- Located in Lower Coast Algiers, and they promise "better-than-organic growing practices" using compost and organic nutrients instead of chemical fertilizers.
Grow Dat Youth Farm🥚
- Best for lovers of salads and leafy greens, Grow Dat supports the farm's youth leadership program in City Park. Grow Dat also offers a 50% discount for SNAP benefits recipients.
Veggi Farmers Cooperative 🧑🌾
- This co-op in New Orleans East focuses its CSA box on produce native to New Orleans and of significance to the local Vietnamese community.
Berry Hill Farm 🏠 🍞
- This family-owned Loranger farm avoids using herbicides or pesticides and promises baked bread, cut flowers and other homemade farm products with each delivery. Deliveries arrive Tuesdays and Fridays for most of the New Orleans, Metairie and North Shore areas.
CCFM Box 🧑🌾 🏠
- Through a partnership with Top Box, the Crescent City Farmers Market offers a diverse collection of its vendors' products, changing up the contents weekly. SNAP beneficiaries qualify for a 50% discount too.
Laughing Buddha Market 🧑🌾 🥚🍞
- This farmer-owned grocery in Metairie works with more than 40 regional producers of meat, veggies, dairy, pasta, rice, honey and more. Unlike a CSA box, you order what you want and pick it up at the store or one of the local hubs.