What is a “Food Share” and how does it work?

Q&A with Off the Vine founder Tess Schaffner

1.  What is a Share?
A share is a three month or six month subscription consisting of either Produce, Eggs, Meat, Dairy, Combination or Customized package.

 2.  How often do I pick up or receive my delivery and where do I pick up my box?
We offer weekly pick up in Williamsburg and bi-weekly pick up and delivery in Williamsburg, Yorktown and Fredericksburg.  We also ship Meat & Cheese Shares and a la carte items throughout the U.S.

 3.  How do I know the produce is local and spray free or organic?
We provide full transparency on where our food originates by providing our customers with a “Share Menu” each delivery period.  The Share Menu details the item and variety in your share box, the name of the farm or grower, and their county of origin.

 4.  What size shares do you offer?
For Produce Shares, we currently offer Single, Couple, and Family; if customers are interested in trying out a share, we also offer a  Grab N Go box that provides a nice sampling of fruits and vegetable and is equal to a Single Share Box.  Examples of our share boxes can be found on our website and on our facebook page.

Meat Shares we offer 12, 15, 25 lb boxes or a one month sampler box of 12 pounds.

 5.  Do you offer fruit in your Shares?
We place at least one fruit in our boxes May through February.  berries, cider, melons, peaches, plums in Spring and Summer; apples, grapes, pears, peaches, and pie pumpkins in Fall; apples, flash frozen and dried fruits and apple juice in Winter.

 6.  Can I add on items to my weekly pick up?
Yes, you can easily order from our Online Market a la carte items or purchase from our Retail Store.

7.  What is the “Whole Enchilada” Share?
“The Whole Enchilada” consists of the following items:

• 12 to 14 lbs Meat (Beef, Chicken & Pork or your choice combination)
• Produce Share – Couple Size – 2 per month
• 1 Half Gallon Natural Milk – 2 per month
• Cheese –  Cow, Goat or combination
• 1 Quart Yogurt or 1 Pint Ice Cream – 2 per month
• 1 Pound Butter
• 1 Bread or Gluten Free Option – 2 per month

Meat and Butter is delivered once a month, Produce Share is available weekly or bi-weekly and all other items are picked up bi-weekly.  Customers can also upgrade to a Family Produce Share, add on extra Milk, Yogurt, Eggs or other items to customize the share to fit their nutritional needs.

8. Since the produce is seasonal, will I end up with a box of squash in the summer?
Our boxes contain a variety of up to 10 to 12 vegetables and fruits.

For example, in Spring you can anticipate receiving:
2 heads bibb or romaine lettuce
3 lbs red potatoes
1 head broccoli or cauliflower
2 lbs swiss chard or spinach
2 bunches spring sweet onions
2 lbs carrots
2 quarts snap or garden peas
1 quart strawberries
2 bunches asparagus
1 bunch arugula
1 pint shiitake mushrooms
1 fresh herb bouquet

 9.  I am new to this idea of shopping….what happens if I receive an item that I do not know how to cook?
Easy, as we provide our customers each week with an email containing what to expect in your share box, recipes and storage tips.  The recipes for the current and previous weeks are always available to you for your review.

In addition, we offer cooking demonstrations of in season fares, freezer meal workshops, canning and freezing classes, so you have access to a variety of methods to prepare your foods to enjoy now and later.

10.  Can you substitute items in our share?
Let us know if you or a member in your household has any allergies to any fruits, vegetables, eggs, grains, nuts or honey when you sign up and we will omit these items from your box. In addition, if you have special dietary needs or if there is one or two fruits or vegetables that you absolutely do not wish to receive in your box, please let us know and we will substitute with another item.  We want you to enjoy your box and your investment in local foods.

11.  Do you offer any discounts?
We offer renewal discounts to customers who purchase a 3 or 6 month produce or meat share.  Military discounts and refer a friend discounts are also available.

12.  What makes your store different than other grocery stores, CSA’s or co-ops.
We offer local, spray free, organic, preservative and GMO free (Genetically Modified Organisms) fares…period.  Our Retail Market and online market combined offers over 300 items from farms and vendors that we have a relationship with and understand their practices and philosophies.

In addition, we offer hands-on cooking classes, demonstrations, and workshops led by Virginia Chefs, artisans and farmers to educate our customers;  i.e., Cheesemaking, Canning, Medicinal Herb Gardens, Raising Chickens, Gardening and Composting and more.

13.  Do I need to sign a contract and when do shares start?
We do not require a contract, as our shares are rolling, meaning you can start anytime of the year.  Subscriptions and a la carte ordering is available year round.

14.  Are your meats and eggs free range?
To use the term “free range” the USDA states that producers must demonstrate “that the poultry has been allowed access to the outside.”  The term “outside” could simply mean there is a window poultry could squeeze through or it could mean a parking lot or slab of concrete big enough for a small portion of the thousands of poultry a farm may have.

Pastured poultry is probably what most people who read the term “free range” think they are purchasing.  Our farmers poultry (cows and pigs too) are provided a pastured area to forage on grass, seeds, worms and other insects and are fed a non GMO free grain.  The result is a richer flavor in the meat and eggs, higher nutrition and provides a more humane life for the animals.

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About Off The Vine:
Our farmers have been offering premium organic grass fed meats long before the word “organic” became mainstream or trendy. However, they do so because of their commitment to ensure a higher quality of life for the animals, better environmental stewardship, and simply to offer exceptional products to our community.

Our group of farmers also produce certified and organic turkeys, chickens, eggs, and milk with the basic philosophy of quality not quantity feeds the soul.

Off The Vine Market partners with local farmers and producers to bring customers the very best fares available.  We go the extra mile, visiting each farm and producer to learn their methods of farming, soil management and sustainable values.  We inspect the kitchens and work spaces of our bakers and artisan crafters to ensure that the products we offer have been created with exceptional quality ingredients.

About the Owner:
Tess Schaffner launched www.offthevinemarket.com in September 2009 after having several family members diagnosed with cancer and herself suffering from food allergies her whole life.  After reading Barbara Kingsolver’s  Animal, Vegetable, Miracle:  A Year of Food and Life and Michael Pollan’s, In Defense of Food, Schaffner started looking at food a different way.  After conducting a year’s worth of research about local farms and vendors that were pesticide and gmo free, Off The Vine Market was founded.

Off The Vine
Virginia’s Local Farm to Table Connection
312 Lightfoot Road, Suite K
Williamsburg, VA 23188
757-879-2242
www.offthevinemarket.com

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