Harvesting under blue July skies. Photo by Scott David Gordon

As I mentioned last week, I am very excited to be finally moving ahead with the construction of the new barn at the Garfield farm. Once built, this new facility will allow us to consolidate all of our operations in one location. This is huge because it means we won't have to transport our harvests from Garfield to Hergotz for washing and packing. It also will bring all of our staff together making it easier to work as a team. The only downside is I will have a longer commute in the morning! I have gotten used to getting up, grabbing my coffee, and taking a short walk to the office to check in. The good news is I won't have to be driving back and forth all the time - for that, I'd trade my early morning walk to the office any day.

In anticipation of this big change, we are also taking another close look at our organizational structure. At JBG, I like to think we operate inside of a process of continual improvement (most of the time!), and right now, we are focusing on refining job descriptions and identifying the gaps for which we need to hire. I imagine that soon, we will have new positions that need to be filled.  So, if you are interested in working with us, make sure you stay tuned to the blog and keep checking our jobs page at https://www.jbgorganic.com/jobs.

I have to say, with the new facility in place, the Garfield farm is going to be an even better place to work - it looks beautiful out there. I gave a tour of the farm earlier in the week to the Southwest Region Produce Team of Whole Foods Market, and I think they, too, liked being out in the fields. Various Whole Foods teams visit JBG throughout the year, and I always look forward to these tours. It's amazing to me that, despite how big they've grown, this local market still takes the time to visit our farm several times a year. I also have to thank them for letting us use their stores as pickup sites for our CSA members. This is extra work for them - and they certainly don't have to do it - but they take it on because they want to support us as a local farm and the CSA model as well. I am very grateful for their efforts on behalf of JBG. Thank you, Whole Foods - I can't wait to see you out at the farm again.

Photo by Scott David Gordon

CSA Members - Customize Your Boxes Now!

And CSA members - I wanted to make sure that everyone was aware that our CSA box customization feature is fully up and running! What this means is, each week, you can swap out up to two vegetables you don't want for ones that you do. For example, let's say you don't want beets or okra. You can now swap them out for two vegetables on our swap list - you get to choose!

I love the CSA model, but I also know it can be hard on families if there are vegetables you (or your kids!) just won't eat. With this system that allows for up to two trades, we are giving the traditional CSA model just a little more flexibility. You will still be eating in season and eating locally but with more choice. In the long run, it will also help us know more about our community's preferences as we can then take the information garnered from your swaps and use it with our crop planning.

Also, one more thing: our current model of customization requires you to make changes each week to your box within a small window of time. The window of time is short because we need to communicate the daily harvesting needs with our field crew; after a certain point, they won't be able to get it done in time (see below for the specific time windows).

HOW TO CUSTOMIZE:

1. Login to your JBG account during your customization window (see chart below) at jbgorganic.com (If you forgot your password, you can reset it or give us a call or e-mail to reset!). 2. Click on the button that says "customize this delivery". (If the button doesn't show up, that means it's not your customization time window). 3. Choose two items you don't want and swap them with two items that you do from our swap list! Enjoy!

IMPORTANT: In order to meet the demands of our harvesting schedule, these swaps must be done within a short window of time each week. The customization window will open for all members Saturday at 1am. This gives us time to determine, based on what's happening in the fields, what will be available for harvest and to post this on our site. The customization window, as shown in the chart below, will close depending on your pickup day. So, those who pick up earliest in the week will have the shortest time to make changes. While this is not ideal, it lets us harvest the freshest possible vegetables for you and still allow for customization.

Pickup Day & Location   Customization Opens - Customization Closes

Tuesday Delivery & Pickup             Saturday 1AM-Sunday MIDNIGHT

Wed. Delivery & Austin Pickups    Saturday 1AM-Monday MIDNIGHT

Wed. San Antonio Pickups             Saturday 1AM-Sunday MIDNIGHT

Wed. Houston Pickups                    Saturday 1AM-Sunday MIDNIGHT

Thurs. Delivery & Austin Pickups   Saturday 1AM-Tuesday MIDNIGHT

Thurs, Fri, & Sat Dallas Pickups      Saturday 1AM-Monday MIDNIGHT

Fri Delivery & Austin Pickups          Saturday 1AM-Wed MIDNIGHT

Sat & Sun Market Pickups                Saturday 1AM-Wed Midnight

Check your inside label when you get your next CSA share to see how our crew sees the customized contents. If you tried to customize, but there was a hiccup in the process, please shoot us an e-mail at farm@jbgorganic.com.  Thank you and hope you are enjoying this customization feature.