Green Guru Network

We are lucky to live in an area rich with wonderful farm projects year round.  This time of year, local farms are revving up their CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) programs.  Signing up for a CSA means you get to pick up regular allotments of assorted seasonal produce - sure to be extremely fresh and packaged in ample amounts.

Winter Sun Farms, in New Paltz, has a great CSA program with a variety of pick-up spots scattered up and down the Hudson Valley and into New York City.  They are taking sign-ups now!  Click "pick-up spots" above, or the "Become a Member" tab on their homepage to join.  Think you might not be able to finish all the produce without help?  Consider splitting the cost and the produce with a friend or neighbor.  Check out Chronogram's comprehensive list of Hudson Valley CSAs and Hilltop Hanover Farm's CSA offering.

Despite the cold weather, Hudson Valley farmers are still growing and harvesting.  If a CSA membership isn't for you, check out your nearest winter market location, support our local agriculture, and enjoy the freshest produce possible throughout the winter.

Most of us know these days that not all seafoods are created equal – that is, certain types of fish and shellfish are more or less sustainable to catch or farm. Unfortunately the specifics can be confusing. What kind of fish is it? How was it caught? Was it farmed, and how? Where did it come from? Is it safe for me to eat without consuming toxins like mercury?

Luckily there are several organizations who have made it a bit easier by publishing recommendations for us. The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch keeps an updated list of recommendations and publishes a free Pocket Guide for keeping handy at the grocery store. In case you forget your pocket guide, you can text the Blue Ocean Institute’s FishPhone (text 30644 with the message "FISH" and the name of the fish you want to know about) for an instant “thumbs up” or “thumbs down.”

If you’re interested in going local, and avoiding the negatives of conventional fish farming and wild fishing, check out Local Ocean, a new generation of fish farmers in Hudson, NY.

With just a little bit of investigation and a printer or cell phone, you can feel confident that your buying power is going toward the greener side of the seafood market!