Happy New Year! We hope that 2014 is fulfilling and joyful for each of you.
On January 2nd, I came out of the house to start the day and met Mercedes (our favorite long time crew member) face to face with smiles. We were both convinced somehow that 2014 was going to be a good year. Maybe it was intuition, or maybe it was reflective of how farmers are quick to forget the last year and always think the coming year will be better.
Looking back on the last few years, it is obvious Austin has changed so much, as has the local food landscape. Many farms and restaurants have come and gone, and the plethora of new farmers, farmers’ markets, food distribution companies, etc. is overwhelming. We are proud and honored to have been here so long and to have taken part in shaping the state of Austin Food. We are proud to be Texas’ oldest CSA and to have a history of selling to local restaurants long before it was the “latest thing”.
While Katie and I are in some way involved with just about every local food and farming related committee, board, and group that exist around Austin, we have never really been self-promoters and marketers. We have always felt our produce should speak for itself. Unlike many of the latest food marketing businesses, we have tried to keep our CSA operating in a simple manner to keep prices as low as we can. We have avoided selling “add ons” and others’ products because we feel we can only honestly vouch for what we produce ourselves. With all the choices out there, we are honored that so many of you continue to support us. If we could ask anything, it would be that you tell your friends, colleagues, and neighbors about us.
We have some plans and plantings this year that we hope everyone will be as excited about as we are. We have an experimental crop of heirloom peanuts that were successful this past fall, and everyone should see peanuts in their first basket of the season. Black-eyed peas and purple hull peas are on the agenda this year, so look for those in July! Needless to say, we have begun the search for a mechanical sheller. While the last few years have seen poor melon crops, this year we will be growing them in the security of deer fencing on our new river farm land and are expecting much better results. As always, we will be tweaking our plantings to maintain broad diversity and keep things interesting for you.
Once again, thank you all so much for your support. We are happy you continue to choose Austin’s Original CSA Farm!
Sincerely,
David Pitre