Thanks to the growing interest in local, organic food, Angelenos can suddenly pick from a wealth of community supported agriculture programs with locations all over the metropolis. CSA programs basically let you invest in a local farm — for which you’re rewarded with weekly boxes of fresh local produce grown from that farm.

Some of the programs below have stretched that definition of the CSA a bit, to pool produce from more than one organic local farm, for example. Still, the general goal — to connect you to local, seasonal produce and the farms and farmers around you — remains the same. Your options:

CSA California
Cost: $25 for about 15 lbs of produce
Pick-up locations: Downtown Los Angeles, Mar Vista, North Hollywood, Santa Monica, Topanga, Valley Village, West LA (at Fairfax High), Westchester.

I tried out CSA California — and loved the delicious strawberries. This new, quickly-expanding CSA program gets most of its produce from Tutti Frutti, a certified organic farm in Carpinteria.

Take your own reusable bag — or else you’ll get your produce in a paper Trader Joe’s bag. The service requires an initial commitment of at least four weeks — though after pre-paying for the first four weeks, you can then pay for each week on site. Delivery service is available — but it sounds like you have to get 9 other neighbors to also sign up for delivery in order to make this happen.

South Central Farmers.
Cost: $15 a box — for a lot of produce (see Dave Bullock’s photo of the loot)
Pick-up locations: Culver City, Downtown L.A., Hollywood, Lawndale, Leimert Park, Long Beach, Pasadena, Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, Silver Lake, South Pasadena, Watts, Westwood

The now-famous South Central Farmers travel to a farm in Bakersfield to grow produce — then bring it back to sell it to Angelenos. The user-friendly website lets you buy by the week, month, or season — and even pay by Paypal.

Tierra Miguel Foundation
Cost: Roughly $45 per 15 – 20 lb box per week.
Pick-up locations: Altadena, Burbank, Cheviot Hills, Claremont, Costa Mesa, Downtown L.A., Echo Park, Glendale, Granada Hills, Highland Park, Long Beach, Manhattan Beach, Mar Vista, Newport Beach, Pasadena, Torrance, Valley Village, Van Nuys, and more.

Biodynamic farming fans can get all their produce from an organic, biodynamic farm in Pauma Valley, Calif., run by the nonprofit Tierra Miguel Foundation. See Jill Doughtie’s post at Eye Level Pasadena for a closer look at what the Tierra Miguel deliveries look like.

Perhaps the best-known CSA program in the area, the downsides to this program include the lack of exact pickup location info on the website, cumbersome sign-up process (you have to mail in a form) and the higher up front cost that requires to pay $700 in advance for each season. However, you can join mid-season at a prorated cost or get a two box trial for $90.

Abundant Harvest Organics
Cost: $19.80 for a box “that will feed one to two people” for a week; $33.80 for a box that’ll feed a family of 4 for a week.
Pick-up locations: Downtown L.A., Hollywood, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Topanga, Valencia, Woodland Hills

Abundant Harvest Organics gets its produce from local family farms — profiled in detail on the AHO website — though some produce comes from the Coachella Valley region, depending on the season. You can easily add on to your box extras like raw milk, eggs, and chicken at whole sale prices.

Silver Lake Farms CSA.
Cost: $20 for a box of produce
Pick-up locations: Silver Lake and Beachwood Canyon

Launched late last year, Silver Lake Farms CSA gets all its vegetables very locally, from one Farmer John in Echo Park and Tara, veggie grower at Silver Lake Farms. Become a member by contacting Tara at info@silverlakefarms.com or 323-644-3700. One downside: These CSA boxes are fruitless, at least until L.A. laws are changed to allow for sale of locally-grown fruit. Upside: Tara posts recipes for current CSA box ingredients on her blog!

Napa Valley Grille (PDF)
Cost: Roughly $35 a week for a box enough to feed two for a week.
Pick-up location: Westwood

This brand new CSA program’s run by Chef Joseph Gillard of eco-minded restaurant Napa Valley Grille in Westwood, where CSA members will need to pick up their boxes every Wednesday. The produce, grown by organic standards, comes from Country Fresh Herbs’s two farms in Tarzana and Somis. You will need to pay up front: $520 per thirteen-week season ($455 for winter) — or $1900 for the whole year. An extra bonus for this CSA’s members: A seasonal farm dinner will be held for all participants at the farm and Napa Valley Grille!

J.R. Organics Farm
Cost: Roughly $24 per box of produce — each enough to feed a family of 4 — plus a $20 one-time fee.
Pick-up locations: Mar Vista, Santa Monica

Get all your produce from an organic farm in Escondido. Because J.R. Organics also sells at booths at local farmers’ markets, customers who pick up from those locations can trade in items for other fruits or veggies they like better. 98%+ of the produce in the CSA boxes are grown at the J.R. Organics Farm, but some of the fruits come from other local, organic farmers.

You do need to sign up for a longer-term membership and pay up front, but trial 4-box memberships start at just $94 — plus a $10 non-refundable administrative fee and a $10 refundable box deposit. J.R. Organics also offers flower shares at $10 per bouquet, if you’d like seasonal, fresh, locally-grown flowers delivered with your CSA box.

Old Chimney Farm.
Cost: Roughly $30 for about a dozen servings of produce
Pick-up locations: Delivered to your doorstep in Malibu!

If you live in Malibu, this is about as local and convenient as you can get. Get your weekly box of produce direct from a local 8-acre permaculture farm — delivered to your doorstep every Tuesday between 4-6pm. This brand new CSA requires a seasonal commitment ($360 for a 12 week season). Sign up now — Only 7 spaces are left, and deliveries begin June 22!

CSU Farm Fresh Produce Bag Subscription Program .
Cost: $10 to $12 for a bag of produce for 1 – 2 people
Pick-up locations: Thursday Farm Stand at EXPO, 3980 Menlo Ave., Los Angeles

For low income or bargain seekers who live near USC, this CSA program sounds the most affordable, though I haven’t actually seen a $10 bag to see how much Community Services Unlimited — a nonprofit community organization based in South L.A. — deems is enough produce for 1 – 2 people. If the produce isn’t enough, you can opt for the larger $20 bag — still a great deal, considering the fact that the very local produce comes from CSU’s urban mini-farms and local farmers.

Subscribe for a minimum of four weeks. And if you’re a well-heeled locavore, consider paying the “supporter rate” — $12 for a small bag, $24 for a large — to help out your local farmers.

Amy’s Farm CSA
Cost: $20 for 6 – 9 varieties of produce.
Location: Claremont, South Ontario

This cute CSA program gets its produce from Amy’s Farm, a program of the nonprofit Southern California Agricultural Land Foundation that seeks “equitable access to healthy food” and “preservation of local space to grow this food.” According to the website, “A large percentage of Amy’s Farm produce is donated to local food banks and shelters.”

Farm Box LA
Cost: $50 for enough fruits, veggies, and herbs to feed 1-2 people a week
Delivery area: Most parts of Los Angeles County.

I’ve tried this service — and love it — but find it too expensive. That said, here’s one very local company that provides very personalized service. Farm Box L.A. is run by an L.A. woman called Reysha Fryzer, who personally picks up produce from local farms at the Hollywood Farmers Market — and delivers them to your doorstep in a big reusable plastic box.

Expect top notch service — from box contents and unique recipes on the Farm Box LA blog, to details on the exact farms your produce is coming from, to a veggie pickling service for $10 a jar if you can’t finish the entire box’s contents. If you can pay for it and could use the tips and help, the service is a uniquely handy one.

Auntie Em’s Delivery
Cost: $42 for 13 -15 types of produce, enough to feed 2 for a week.
Delivery area: Eagle Rock, Silver Lake, Glendale, Pasadena, Santa Monica, Hollywood, West L.A., Downtown L.A.

Can’t be bothered to pick-up local organic produce yourself? Get it delivered via Auntie Em’s Delivery, which buys local, organic produce from Santa Monica, Pasadena, Hollywood, and South Pasadena farmers’ markets as well as some local farms. Delivery doesn’t come cheap though, since in addition to the higher-than-average produce prices, you’ll need to fork up a refundable $60 deposit — and be ready to pay a $10 fee every time you forget to leave out the reusable delivery boxes by 6 am in the morning.

Still, you can’t beat Auntie Em’s on convenience. In addition to the produce, you can add on prepared meals, desserts, cheeses, and other grocery items — like Truffled Mac and Cheese with Spring Peas or frozen pie dough — for an extra charge.

Farm Fresh to You
Cost: $31.50 for a box enough for “4 people or a couple that enjoys cooking.”
Pick-up location: Delivered to doorsteps all over the L.A. area!

I tried this CSA delivery service — and am still using it today. Don’t have the time — or don’t want to drive — to pick you your CSA box? Farm Fresh to You will deliver to your door local produce picked within less than 48 hours — if you’re willing to expand your definition of local produce to include those grown 90 miles northeast of San Francisco in Capay Valley. The produce comes from such various and far away farms that this program toes the line between a CSA program and a less farm-specific organic produce delivery service.

Still, customers can select the “Capay Valley Organic Service,” and all your produce will come from farms in Capay Organic Valley. You also have the option of going for the “Regular Organic Service” for more variety — but then some of your produce will be sourced from even farther away — including from farms outside California. The flexible program lets you opt for veggies only, fruits only, or bigger boxes.

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Tried any of these CSAs? Share your experience in the comments. Still can’t find a CSA with a pick-up location you can walk or bike to? Almost all of the above options are open to adding on new pick-up locations. You’ll just need to do the work of getting neighbors interested, finding an appropriate pick-up spot, and coordinating with the CSA.

Earlier:
>> Organic produce delivery in L.A.
>> Organic fruits and veggies, simplified
>> Organic meals, delivered in Los Angeles
>> Spud: Organic food delivery with a food mile calculator
>> Hacks for Locavores

Top photo of CSA California’s box contents by Siel; bottom photo of Tierra Miguel CSA box by Jill Doughtie

>> Yet the bottled water industry’s still trying to align itself with eco-causes — including our local eco-orgs. About 150 volunteers helped Friends of the Los Angeles River clean up the Van Nuys section of the waterway on Friday. The event was funded by a “$50,000 donation from Aquarius Spring, a bottled water branch of the Coca-Cola Co.” L.A. Times mentions the sponsorship — but doesn’t draw any connection between that and the fact that plastics made up the bulk of the crap volunteers picked out of the river.

>> Perhaps we can add fewer plastic water bottles to the many eco-benefits of high-priced oil that a new book by Christopher Steiner — $20 Per Gallon: How the Inevitable Rise in the Price of Gasoline Will Change Our Lives for the Better — points out.

Earlier:
10 reasons to ditch the bottled water habit
Bring your own cup and mug: An eco-stylish money-making habit
What’s in your bottled water?
Take back the tap, avoid new taxes

Photo by Mike Willis

Paula of Righteous Velo-Metal Broad

Basics: 30-year-old medical biller in Van Nuys. Lives with a roommate. Child-free.

Car free since: May 2008.

Blogging since: April 2008.

Notable posts:
>> Paula’s pick: The menacing skunk
>> green LA girl’s pick: Do I make men feel less macho when I pass them on my bike?
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On going car-free….

I guess you could say it was really easy for me to embrace the car free lifestyle because I was only a car owner for a little over a year. Before I got a car, when I was a bus rider and only occasional bike rider, I NEEDED a car so bad. I wanted nothing more than to just drive. I was obsessed. I still see so many people on the bus who just talk about how they hate taking the bus and NEED a car.

I wanted a car so damn bad but got a hard dose of reality when I got one and found out how stressful it was to own one. Not only does it cost a lot of money to keep it running (gas, DMV, insurance, maintenance) driving it is really stressful, especially when everyone else out on the 405 is fucking crazy. People confuse needs and wants all the time.

We in Los Angeles are such a car-obsessed culture. I only got my SUV a few days before turning 29 and all throughout my adult life, when I was a bus rider and occasional bike rider, when people would find out I didn’t have a car (or a driver’s licence) they would look at me as if I was some sort of freak.

My father gave me this SUV when he realized that I was VERY serious about getting a divorce. I had just got my drivers license (when I was 28) and my dad was proud of me and gave me an old SUV.

That old SUV was a piece of CRAP gas guzzler. So many components in it did not work and it was in a sad state. It would have cost nearly $1500 just to get it up and running. That coupled with gas prices made me realize it would be more cost effective to give it up.

When I got my SUV, I started going to the gym, and in that ENTIRE YEAR of driving, I only lost 20 pounds and it was VERY hard (and expensive). I figured getting out there and walking and bicycling is just a more healthier option. Well, right after kicking my ex out and deciding to get a divorce (it took nearly two years to get a divorce), I lost 60 pounds. That was just from taking the bus, walking and riding an old target bike just a couple of miles a day.

The health benefits are great. I wasn’t ever really one to have road rage but bicycling everywhere has mellowed me out big time. I can have a very stressful day at work but those worries leave as soon as I get on my bike. The endorphins from riding are better than any drug. I’m still full figured but I have a nice shape about me, so the exercise is great (I don’t have to go to the gym anymore). All I need to do is find a good man to ride with me.

I was even hit on by someone a couple of weeks ago (when I was on my way to LA Flying Pigeon to get a new bike). This guy kept saying that he missed his car (was in an accident) and hated taking the bus. He also said that I was very pretty and didn’t NEED to ride a bicycle. That I was already thin and should at least try a motorcycle, because it has a motor and is sexy. He was so not my type for a few reasons 1. I am not thin, 2. I love riding, it relieves stress and 3. I do not need ANYONE to tell me what I should and should not be doing. It’s a huge turn off.

I might add that people who spend a lot of time talking shit about having to take the bus really get on my nerves. Sure it can suck sometimes, but the bus, rail and subway is pretty awesome and I remember a few years ago when it was worse. They’ve made some great improvements to their service in recent years, and I wish I wasn’t so damn paranoid about taking my beautiful flying pigeon on the bus (it’s just so big and heavy and I’m afraid it will fall; some of these bus drivers are crazy drivers).

How she gets around.

My bicycle is my transport. I ride 15 miles each way [to work]. If I am sick, I am able to carpool with a coworker who lives close.

My roommate is my brother and I do not borrow his car. I’ve been thinking about renting, like Enci sometimes does, but I really don’t want to. My bike has a basket and it holds what I need.

On the upsides and downsides….

Unexpectedly easy: doing everyday errands fast and efficiently while getting a nice workout. Unexpectedly hard: motivating yourself to go out and run errands after commuting to work ALL WEEK LONG.

It’s just figuring out how to deal with buying large objects and hauling them around. I seriously need a bike trailer or a cargo bike. I mean, pannier bags are great for shopping but I do not want to have to rely on asking my brother for a ride to go and carry a big object.

Another obstacle is just finding other people who are open to the car free lifestyle. I imagine a bike ride for a date would be nice — the hard part is just finding a guy who thinks the same thing. Oh, I’m talking about a man, not some young kid who thinks drinking a can of beer while riding is a good night. :S oy vey.

It’s not exactly easy to go car free [in Van Nuys] because the closest Trader Joe’s is 5 miles away. I don’t like the grocery stores in my area. And this neighborhood is not so great. But really, all I needed to do was get over myself and get on my bike. I can easily ride where ever I need to go; all I need to do is get to the orange line bike path and it’s smooth riding. When you are off the bike and thinking about going somewhere, that’s when it feels like it’s HARD. But once you’re riding, all misconceptions flee.

I get so many catcalls and obscene things yelled at me. It doesn’t matter what I wear. I can be in a dress or sweats, I will still get harassed. I mean, it sure as hell felt safer enclosed in my SUV as this would happen less often. But it happens a lot when I’m either on my bike or walking. But it’s not going to stop me. There is danger everywhere. If I worried about every little thing that CAN happen, I would never leave my apartment.

Advice for the car-free curious.

Know the rules of the road, carry protection (U-Lock, pepper spray), be prepared (patch kit, tire pump), know how to take care of your bike (research your local bike shop for free bike maintenance classes), use tinted moisturizer with a good SPF factor and do not be afraid to wear heels while riding (they wont slip off the pedals like flats).

Do not be afraid to look like a normal woman when riding your bike. You DO NOT have to be skinny or wear bright yellow spandex and ride a carbon fiber bike to be a “real cyclist” and do not let anyone tell you otherwise. Pannier bags are great for shopping, fo realz.
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green LA girl’s notes: I’m slightly embarrassed to say I don’t even own panniers, U-Lock, pepper spray, patch kit, or portable tire pump — much less carry them with me — nor do I really know how to maintain my bike. However, I do wear sunscreen and heels….

My sense is that Paula has a tougher go of it than I do, because she lives in a less bike-friendly, tougher neighborhood. My grocery store’s 3 blocks away so I don’t even need to get on a bike, and while the cat calls are annoying, they tend not to be as obscene, frequent or persistent in Santa Monica as they are in some other ‘hoods.

Luckily, Paula’s clearly also a much stronger cyclist — I think I’ve biked 15 miles ROUNDTRIP for Green Drinks once…. I’m guessing the fact that I haven’t lost an ounce since I started biking’s somewhat related to my wimpy cycling –

Follow RVMB’s bicycling adventures on her blog, which often features bike porn (not actually porn. SFW).

Photo via RVMB