With CSA season right around the corner, I want to address one of the common concerns I hear about the CSA: “There are 5-6 items in a small box?! How am I supposed to eat THAT many vegetables in a week?!”
If you’ve been in school in the past 3 decades, or have paid attention to nutrition advice from the USDA during that time, you probably remember the old food pyramid. This is what recommended 3-5 servings of vegetables and 2-4 servings of fruit per day.
All images from wikipedia
Then the food pyramid was replaced with MyPyramid, which recommended 2 1/2 cups of vegetables and 2 cups of fruit per day.
And now, the current USDA graphic is MyPlate, which recommends that 40% of your daily plate is vegetables and 10% is fruits.
And, the popular phrase “Five a day” is an interpretation of WHO recommendations that helps us remember to consume 5 portions of fruit and veggies per day.
So why does all this matter?
Many people are concerned that they won’t be able to eat everything in their CSA box each week. But remember "5 A Day"? How you're supposed to eat 5 servings of fruits and veggies per day? (Yeah, I don't always manage that either.)
This means if we're actually trying to follow that advice and eat healthy, one person needs 35 servings of fruits and veggies every week.
The amount of produce in the weekly CSA boxes varies seasonally, but on average, there are about 20 servings per small box. So if there are two people in your household, a small box should definitely be manageable. (And don’t forget to pick up some extra veggies and fruits to get all your servings!)
If it still seems like too much, or if you'll be traveling a lot this summer, consider splitting your box with a neighbor or friend. There are several CSA members who do this and it’s a win-win: you automatically have someone to pick up the box for you if you’re on vacation, AND that person can pass the tomatoes back to you if they don’t like them!
Now, I recognize that KNOWING how many servings we’re supposed to be eating is different than actually EATING that many servings. Stay tuned for some upcoming blog posts with ideas for how to actually incorporate more vegetables into your meals.
And, if you think this is the year you should finally get serious about eating your vegetables, check out our CSA page for more details.
