Category: Events

CSA hosted/sponsored events

Categories
Events

Special CSA Screening: AMERICAN MEAT

American Meat
American Meat, the movie.

While you wait for summer to arrive, you might want to check out a new documentary on U.S. meat farming called American Meat. Some of you might remember we had a special rough-cut screening and discussion of the film a couple of years ago here in Sunnyside, but the film has since toured the nation and is finally getting a week-long theatrical run at Cinema Village in Manhattan.

On Monday, April 15 @ 7pm there will be a special CSA Night screening and panel discussion, featuring our very own Alan & Nancy Waite of Lewis Waite Farms, Paula Lukats of Just Food, Richard Morris of Polyface Farms, Amanda Pitts of the Bushwick Food Co-op, and Local Roots CSA founder Wen-Jay Ying!

We’ve been able to snag a couple of FREE TICKETS to this event. If you would like to win them, simply email us at veggies [at] sunnysidecsa [dot] com with your best “meat haiku” by end of day Friday, April 5th. The best haiku written on the subject of meat gets the tickets! (Name the subject heading “meat haiku”, please.) Everyone else can get tickets here!

The film is only playing for a week in New York City: Friday, April 12- Thursday, April 18 and will feature different panel discussions every night.  It takes a balanced look at all aspects of meat production, from large industrial farms to tiny pasture-based ones, asking the question “can we feed the U.S. with grass-based farming?” Here’s a quote from Omnivore’s Dilemma star Joel Salatin: “American Meat offers a thoughtful, engaging look at livestock production in the U.S. Rather than engaging in polarizing diatribe, the documentary respects the personhood of both factory-type farmers and their pasture-based counterparts.”- Joel Salatin, farmer and author, founder of Polyface FarmsPanel discussions (after the 7pm show):

  • Friday, April 12: Farmers on Innovation, featuring Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, Paul Willis of Niman Ranch, Communications Director at Chipotle Mexican Grill Chris Arnold, and co-founder of Applegate Chris Ely
  • Saturday, April 13: Beginning Farmers, featuring Jon McConaughy of Double Brook Farms, Craig Haney of Stone Barns Center for Agriculture, Mary Kimball of Land Based Learning and Ben Flanner of Brooklyn Grange **Farmers are admitted FREE**
  • Sunday, April 14: Food Systems, featuring Dave Murphy and Lisa Stokke of Food Democracy Now, and Tanya Fields of BLKGRL
  • Monday, April 15: Community Supported Agriculture, featuring Richard Morris of Polyface Farms, Alan & Nancy Waite of Lewis Waite Farms, Paula Lukats of Just Food, Amanda Pitts of the Bushwick Food Co-op, and Local Roots CSA founder Wen-Jay Ying
  • Tuesday, April 16: Chefs and Butchers featuring butcher Tom Mylan, butcher Jake Dickson, chef Bill Telepan, green caterer Mary Cleaver, and author/butcher Julie Powell
  • Wednesday, April 17: Markets, featuring Greenmarket Executive Director Michael Hurwitz, New Amsterdam Market founder Robert LaValva & Flying Pigs Farm founder Michael Yezzi
  • Thursday, April 18: The Making of American Meat, featuring editor Memo Salazar and cinematographer Ryan Nethery
Categories
Events

Your ticket to EAT • WORK • GROW THE MOVEMENT?

conference
Just Food Conference 2013

Sunnyside CSA is looking to sponsor one lucky member to attend this year’s Just Food Conference! We’ll pay for your ticket, you attend the conference and write a quick blog post about what you found most interesting. No, this is not homework! Just an opportunity to share information you think other CSA members will enjoy!

We will sponsor you for ONE DAY, so please choose Friday or Saturday (or go to both, but we can only pay for one day). The conference has so much to offer, including workshops, food talks, a policy panel, a farmer panel and an Expo!

EAT • WORK • GROW THE MOVEMENT
Just Food Conference 2013
When: Friday, March 29th & Saturday, March 30th
Where: Food & Finance High School 525 West 50th Street, New York, NY

Please Note: We can only sponsor one person and we really do want you to write a blog post, so *please* attend the conference if we sponsor you!

If you are interested, Contact Us through the website, our Facebook page or via Twitter. Even if you’re not interested, stay up-to-date with our social media posts and like us or follow us!

Categories
Events

Open Sign Ups for the 2013 Season!

Veggie shares are SOLD OUT for the 2013 season but you can still buy fruit, herb or milk shares. Just download the contract and send with your check ASAP—DEADLINE is April 30th.

It’s time to prepare for Sunnyside CSA 2013 Sign Ups! Returning and new members, please join us on February 21st from 6-8pm at Sunnyside Community Services and sign up for the 2013 Summer/Autumn Season!

Please read about our 2013 Share Options. For the Summer/Autumn Season, we are offering vegetable, fruit, herb and dairy shares. Once you decide what you want, you can download the contract and bring it, along with your check made out to Sunnyside CSA, to the sign up. (You can also fill out a contract there, but things will move much quicker if you have it all ready.)

Here’s how to be prepared:

1. Read about the share options

2. Download and print the Membership Contract: Sunnyside CSA 2013 Contract

3. Bring your checkbook

4. Please make sure to Join our Yahoo email group, which is how Sunnyside CSA sends important announcements.

Please Note these Important Details:

-> Depending on how many vegetable shares are left to sell, we may or may not have another one, so please come to this if you are interested in a vegetable or fruit share for 2013!

-> Because of a variety of logistical reasons, we can’t accept a contract without a check; if you do not bring a check to the sign up, we can’t save you a space. (We’ll take an exact cash amount if that’s all you have, but would rather not for security reasons.) Please be aware of all this!

-> Open Sign Ups will take place during one of our winter share pickup dates.

If you have any questions, please Contact Us.

Categories
Events

Annual Town Hall Meeting & Returning Member Sign Ups

Happy 2013 Sunnyside CSA! It’s time for us to roll out BIG announcements, so please stay tuned and get ready for the 2013 Summer/Autumn season.

Town Hall Meeting

Sunnyside CSA will host our annual Town Hall Meeting on Thursday, Jan. 24th in the big main meeting room at SCS from 6:30 – 8p.m. Anyone and everyone is welcome to attend the Town Hall Meeting. It’s your chance to speak your mind, ask questions, and talk to our wonderful farmers that make it all happen.

Returning Member Sign Up

Returning Members, Sign Up for the 2013 Summer/Autumn veggie, fruit, herb and dairy shares will take place directly after the Town Hall Meeting.

Here’s how to be prepared:

1. Read about the share options

2. Download and print the Membership Contract: Sunnyside CSA 2013 Contract

3. Bring your checkbook

4. Attend the Town Hall meeting and meet your farmers!

Important to Note:

This first sign-up is only open to current members (in good standing).

Sunnyside CSA will not be offering online sign ups for the 2013 Summer/Autumn shares. You MUST sign up IN PERSON.

If you are not a returning member, you will be able to sign-up soon. Please make sure to Join our Yahoo email group and stay tuned for details.

Categories
Events

Chef Jenny’s Autumn Veg Tasting

Special Event at Tonight’s Pick-up!

Don’t miss a free tasting of dishes made from our CSA veggies tonight from 5pm until the food runs out!

You may remember our CSA Chef, Jenny, from the tasting she created for us in August. She’ll be back again tonight with four new dishes for you to try and recipe sheets to take home. Tonight’s recipes feature the hardier veggies we see during the cooler months. Come check out side dishes that would be great for Thanksgiving and a dessert that may give you a new way to use all of those sweet potatoes. Lots of folks had fun chatting with Jenny and asking questions back in August, so please stop by and say hello!

Coming Soon: All of CSA Chef Jenny’s recipes will be posted to our website. Stay tuned.

Categories
Events

Composting at Sunnyside Community Gardens

To the many CSA’ers interested in a local composting program, you will be happy to know a group of volunteers have revived composting at Sunnyside Community Gardens, and you are invited to participate! Please check out the message below for details:

We are writing to invite you to donate your food/kitchen scraps for composting at the Sunnyside Community Garden (50th Street and Barnett—map).

Beginning this Saturday, food/kitchen scraps will be collected at the following times:

Saturdays, 9:00 – 11:00 a.m.
Sundays, 3:00 – 5:00 p.m.
(ONLY drop off during those hours)

Accepted materials include:
* Fruit and vegetable scraps
* non-greasy food scraps (rice, pasta, bread, cereal etc.)
* coffee grounds & filters, tea bags
* egg and nut shells, pits
* cut or dried flowers, houseplants and potting soil

Please NO meat, chicken, fish, greasy food scraps, fat, oil, dairy, animal waste, litter or bedding, coal or charcoal, coconuts, diseased and/or insect-infested houseplants/soil or biodegradable/compostable plastics.

Keep your food scraps in a brown bag in your freezer or a reusable container (juice carton, yogurt container, crock, plastic tub, etc). We ask you that any containers you bring your scraps in be taken with you.

We are also participating in Project Leaf Drop so please bring your leaves during the above drop-off hours.

For more information, please go to our website: www.sunnycompost.org.

In order to keep our Compost Collection and Processing site up and running, we ask each member to volunteer. Find out more during our drop-off hours.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

Categories
Events

Harvest Festival & Bus Trip

harvest fest
Join us at the Golden Earthworm Harvest Festival! Image via: GEOF

It’s that time of year again, and with it comes our farm’s annual Harvest Festival! Enjoy an activity-filled afternoon at Golden Earthworm Organic Farm in beautiful Jamesport, Long Island: Tour the farm, listen to music, eat well, take a hay ride… you name it! There’s plenty there for adults and kids alike.

Due to popular demand, we are partnering with Astoria CSA and renting a bus—the farm is about 2 hours away. Of course, CSA members can drive to the farm on their own (directions here), but if you want to save gas and not think about driving, SIGN UP TO RIDE THE BUS. We’re asking for a $5 contribution per person to help with the bus rental.
**More bus info below**

GOLDEN EARTHWORM HARVEST FESTIVAL
Sunday, October 14, 2012, from 11am-3pm

This event is FREE, but open only to current CSA Members and their guests. Please bring your own picnic lunch and sturdy walking shoes for touring the farm.

Ongoing Events
Hayride Tours
Animal Shearing
Live Music
Walking Tours
Entertainment for Kids
Farmstand Open (Produce & Organic Baked Goods for sale!)
Q&A with Farmers

Childrens Activities
Story Telling & Singing with Barbara Garriel
GIANT Haystack Game
Scavanger Hunt

Cooking Demos
Join Alexa as she whips up delicious recipes featuring our seasonal produce!

Click here for DIRECTIONS to the farm.

MORE BUS RIDE INFO

You must SIGN UP TO RIDE THE BUS. First-come, first-serve. Please note: The way the sign-up page is designed, it looks like you are about to pay for tickets online with a credit card. Ignore this! Simply select the number of people in your party (guests are welcome) under “Sunnyside CSA members” and choose “Show Other Payment Options” (written in microscopic text under the “Order Now” button) and choose “Pay At The Door.” Then, fill out the info and place the “order.” There is no $1.12 processing fee. Just bring $5 per person in cash to the bus, and we’ll collect the money then. Simple! Don’t forget to read all the bus details below!

Sign up for the bus ride!

Instructions for bus pick up & drop off:
Be at the pick up location no later than 8:50 AM
****PICK UP: @ PATHMARK Parking LOT ****
4202 Northern Blvd, Long Island City 11101
(Less than a 15 min walk from Sunnyside Community Services. Q66 bus stop is on the corner. MTA 36th St R/M stop a few blocks away.)
***DO NOT LEAVE YOUR VEHICLE AT PATHMARK PARKING LOT—PLEASE FIND STREET PARKING NEARBY!***

We will be back in Queens at approximately 5 pm (depending on traffic).

Happy Harvest Fest!

Categories
Events

CSA Summer BBQ ~ Sat, July 28th

Join us for our barbecue party!

SORRY, the BBQ was CANCELLED due to rain.

It’s Summer BBQ time! Get ready to throw your bounty of zucchini, radicchio and onions (just to name a few) on the grill! Find even more great BBQ items through our partners at Lewis Waite Farm, like bratwurst, steak, even hot dogs! Be sure to place your LWF order by July 22nd for delivery on July 26th.

WHAT: CSA BBQ!
WHEN: July 28th at 4 P.M.
WHERE: Sunnyside Gardens Park 48-21 39th Avenue

Please bring a dish to share along with your grillers of choice. The CSA will provide non-alcoholic drinks, chips charcoal, and paperware. You can bring your own drinks (alcoholic or other) but NO GLASS please!

Please RSVP online by July 25th and check out the Facebook event page!

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY ALERT: If you can’t volunteer during our regular CSA set-up and pick-up times, this is a great opportunity to jump in!  We need 2 set-up and 2 clean-up volunteers at the BBQ. Please contact us if you want to pick up one of these shifts. Thanks!

Categories
Events

Strawberry Picking Trip Update: A FULL BUS!

Enthusiasm for this Sunday’s Strawberry Picking Trip was so great, that our bus is now full. Repeat- the bus is full! Thanks, everyone, for your interest. If you aren’t on the bus list but want to go pick strawberries, remember, you can still go- and not just this weekend, either. Check out Golden Earthworm’s site for more info.

For those that are going on the bus, please make note of the final details:

WHEN: This Sunday, June 10!

WHERE: The Pathmark parking lot on Northern Blvd. 4202 Northern Blvd, LIC, NY 11101

HOW TO GET THERE:  Q66 bus stop is on the corner; MTA 36th St R/M stop is a few blocks away… but the easiest way to get there from Sunnyside is by foot. Here are walking directions from SCS. You can drive, but DON’T PARK IN THE PARKING LOT OR YOU’LL GET TOWED! Thankfully, it’s Sunday so nearby on-street parking should be fairly easy.

WHAT TIME: Arrive by 8:50 at the LATEST! The bus is leaving promptly and will wait for no one! It’s a 2 hour trip; we should be back in Queens around 5:30.

HOW MUCH: Strawberries are $4 a quart (a CSA special from the farm), but we also need you to chip in for gas. $5 for adult CSA members, $10 for adult non-members, $0 if you’re a kid.

LUNCH: Pack it. Bring it. There are no restaurants or anything nearby- just lots of strawberries.

See you there!

Categories
Events

U-Pick Strawberries (final details)

UPDATE: Our bus is full! For those who are already signed up, please be ready to go at the Pathmark parking lot NO LATER than 8:50am.

As mentioned earlier, lots of folks are interested in sharing a bus ride to Golden Earthworm Organic Farm on June 10th for a day of Strawberry Picking! Now for  the final details… Please read and sign up for the trip!

Once a year Golden Earthworm Organic Farm opens up their beautiful organic strawberry fields for you and your family to enjoy a day of strawberry picking. SUNNYSIDE and ASTORIA CSAs will be traveling by bus to the farm, located in the North Fork of Long Island.

THE SPECIFICS

  • DATE: Sunday June 10th, 2012
  • TIME: Please be at the Pathmark parking lot for pick up NO later than 8:50am
  • We will be back in Astoria/Sunnyside by 5:30pm

***PICK UP: @ PATHMARK Parking LOT ***
Pathmark Long Island City
4202 Northern Blvd
LIC, NY 11101

If you are driving, visit the Golden Earthworm page for directions. Depending on traffic, the drive is a little over 2 hours.

PLEASE PACK A LUNCH! This trip is rain or shine please dress appropriately—the farm can be a little muddy in the Spring 🙂

Sorry, no animals are allowed on the bus or the farm.

Again, if you are definitely planning on attending the strawberry picking, please fill out the short form.

NOTE: Even if you already filled out the previous form expressing interest in attending the strawberry picking, we need you to fill out this new confirmation form. ***It is especially important to fill out the form if you plan on taking the bus!***