I just became a member of a CSA,  which stands for Community Supported Agriculture.  I first heard the term CSA last Spring, my sister-in-law took me to her “Farm” on pick up day.  I thought it was such a great idea and I’m so excited to be able to join a local farm.

CSA Agreements

In the winter and early spring a CSA farm will offer membership shares.  The farmers are paid in advance and through the growing season the shareholders receive weekly baskets of produce.  The members share the risks and rewards with the farmers.

The Benefits to the Farmers

One of the main benefits to the farmers is receiving working capital to purchase seeds and other supplies in the spring.  With the knowledge of how many families they will be supplying produce to, they can plant  their crops accordingly.  There is less waste, as the farmers do not have to guess what will sell at the farmers market.  The farmers are able to spend more time and resources on farming.

The Benefits to the Share Holders

Each week, during the growing season, the CSA members receive a basket of fresh, farm produce, many of the items are harvested the same day the baskets are picked up.  The quantity and variety in the baskets will change each week depending on which vegetables  are at their peak. 

The Benefits to the Environment and Community

Since the farmers are able to sell their vegetables locally the transportation costs are greatly reduced, thus saving on fuel and emissions.  The available land can be managed efficiently with the knowledge of the quantity of produce required.  The farmers and the members get to meet and form friendships. 

I think the CSA is a win, win, win opportunity.  I can hardly wait to get my first basket of farm fresh veggies!

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The Environment and Forestry Class that our nephew attends had a safety drill on their wood lot this past weekend.  Their instructor, Mr. Dennis Flynn, stated the school has fire drills and lockdowns, he thought it was a good idea to have a simulated accident on the wood lot.  Several area fire companies were invited to help with the drill.  The fire fighters became familiar with the location of the wood lot and practiced extricating a victim from under a downed tree.   More details on the wood lot drill can be seen at http://capitalregion.ynn.com/content/656128/first-responders-and-boces-students-train-for-logging-accidents/

Safety in the Work Pace

The safety conscious instructor got me thinking about safety in our plant.  Here at Ketchum we have a very good safety record and work diligently to keep our manufacturing plant incident free.  As a small business, we do not have the luxury of a full-time safety department.  We rely on videos, borrowed from our insurance company, to add visual content to our training.  Our April topics are hearing conservation and hand protection.

Hearing Conservation

We hire a company to bring their mobile testing van to our plant.  After watching a video on hearing conservation and proper use of hearing protection, through a series of beeps our hearing is tested.  The machines used in our manufacturing process are very loud and  hearing protection is required.  I believe the information we receive during training allows our employees to understand the benefits of wearing hearing protection.

Hand Protection

The punch presses at Ketchum stamp, cut and bend metal, as you can imagine, fingers and hands are no match for them.  All of our presses have electronic guards,  the presses will not operate if the guards are not in place.  The metal coils have sharp edges and leather gloves help to keep fingers and hands laceration free.

A big “Thank You” to Mr. Flynn for teaching safety to our students and reminding all of us that safety requires education and practice.

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