Seeds planted for local produce service

Here is an innovative way to promote produce without middlemen at the same time ensuring consumers know where their produce comes from ...

Residents in Seneca County can know the farmer who is growing their food by participating in a program known as Community Supported Agriculture.

Sister Rita Wienken manages such a farm business, known as Seeds of Hope, at Saint Francis in Tiffin. Riehm Farms in Old Fort also operates a C.S.A. Seeds of Hope and Riehm Farms are coming together to present an informational program on C.S.A.'s 7 p.m. Tuesday at Tiffin-Seneca Public Library.

C.S.A. links local farmers in the program directly to families or individuals. Individuals make a commitment and pre-purchase a number of weeks of produce.

The Seeds of Hope farm offers 22 weeks of produce that come directly from local farmers. Wienken said what is received depends in what is in season, but each delivery on average contains what a family of four would consume in a week.

"This is a way to see where their food comes from and a way for the farmer to have an established market," Wienken said. "You can get to know the farmer and how he grows food."

She said farmers in the program farm either certified organic or use sustainable agricultural methods, which integrate environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity.

To purchase a full non-working share costs $450.

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