Business
www.SanTanSun.com
November 2 – 15, 2013
21
Desert Roots Farm grows and delivers fresh veggies BY ALISON STANTON
Kelly Saxer opened Desert Roots Farm in 2001 with one goal in mind: to make eating locally grown and super fresh produce a reality for Valley residents. In the 12-plus years the 25-acre, Queen Creek farm has been in business, Saxer has seen her clientele increase from about 25 to 250 or so regular customers, who eagerly await her weekly deliveries of a variety of vegetables. Lisa Edney of Chandler has been a Desert Roots Farm customer since 2009. She says she loves knowing that she is supporting a local farmer and keeping money in the local community. “The quality of Kelly’s products is better than a store,” Edney says, adding that she finds the taste of the vegetables to be “amazing.” “I’ve fallen in love with more than a few new veggies through this program. I find myself recommending Desert Roots Farm to anyone I know who is looking for organic produce, is chronically ill or looking to lose weight: the nutrients and quality provided in each week’s bag are so beneficial.” Desert Roots Farm offers a subscription program called Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA. “It offers a partnership between our customers and the farm,” Saxer says. The way the CSA program works, Saxer explains, is that people purchase a half or whole “share” of the farm’s season for 12 weeks. The half share costs $18 a week and
the whole share is $23, pre-paid for the season. During that time, the customers will receive a weekly bag of fresh produce that is filled with about eight varieties of seasonal and local vegetables that were grown on the Desert Roots Farm. Saxer says people can opt for home delivery for $6 a week or pick up their bag at any of their 15-plus locations around the Valley. Saxer says the delivery area goes north as far as the Anthem and Cave Creek area, west to Interstate 17, south to Florence and east to Gold Canyon. If people prefer, Saxer says they may also pick up their vegetables at a reduced cost at one of 15 Valleywide locations. While some customers find they like the vegetables that are grown during a certain time of year the best and buy a 12-week share, others enjoy their weekly deliveries of vegetables all year long. “Quite a few have been with us for 10 or 11 years,” Saxer says. The weekly selection includes some late-summer and early-fall produce, Saxer says. For example, customers may enjoy a bag filled with red potatoes, carrots, onions, cucumbers, arugula, Easter egg radishes, basil, zucchini and/or mustard greens. In addition, customers may also choose to have additional locally grown food items added to their weekly deliveries; these include fresh-roasted coffee from a company in Gilbert, pet treats from a Queen Creek business, and grass-fed beef and naturally raised pork and chicken.
“About five or six years ago, we decided to partner with local ranches and businesses. Since we were already making deliveries we realized we could also work with them and include additional things in the bags, if the customers want them,” Saxer says. Besides being delicious, Saxer says the vegetables that are part of the CSA program have one major advantage: freshness. “Here, we harvest the vegetables the day before we deliver them; so we harvest on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for our Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday deliveries,” Saxer says. “Sometimes in the store, the produce may have been sitting there for at least a week before someone buys it, so it won’t last as long. But I’ve had people tell me our lettuce has lasted three weeks for them, and since it’s not going bad, people are getting a better bang for their buck.” Another benefit of being part of the CSA program, Saxer says, is that people know exactly where their produce came from. “People can contact us and make an appointment to come out and see our farm, and it just builds a nice connection with them to know where their food is being grown.” To give her customers an idea of how to cook some of the more unusual vegetables, Saxer says the bags often contain a recipe card. They are also welcome to call the farm if they are unsure of what to do with
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Kelly Saxer has seen her Desert Roots Farm clientele increase 10 fold. STSN photo by Kimberly Hosey
a particular item. “If you have a question about eggplant, how often can you call the store and ask them how to cook it?” Saxer says. Customers are typically thrilled with the weekly selection of items, Saxer says. In some cases, she says she tries to grow varieties of vegetables that are not always available in local stores. “People often think that broccoli is broccoli. But there are so many different types of broccoli with many different flavors. So maybe our variety of broccoli will have a more tender stalk or taste a bit different,” she says. SEE FARM PAGE 26
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