Employer Sponsored Farm Shares
Our Employer Sponsored Farm Share provides a weekly box of Siena Farms' vegetables delivered to your employees' homes or workplace as a healthy, simple, and delicious wellness benefit.
Participating Employers
Q: What seasons and Farm Share options are available for my employees, and what's the cost?
Q: Aside from the fresh produce, what are the perks of an Employer Sponsored Farm Share program?
A: Great question! In addition to supporting the nutritional health of your employees by making it affordable and convenient for them to eat lots of local veggies, our goal is to build a long-term relationship between Siena Farms and your team. This is done through our weekly e-newsletter with recipes, stories and images from the fields, plus annual farm events including optional private farm tours for your employees with Farmer Chris and Chef Ana. The perks for the farm include of course the unique resilience, efficiency, and intimacy provided by the CSA business model, where our customers share in the inherent risks, and delicious rewards, of vegetable farming in New England.
Q: Sounds like a no-brainer! But I'm curious, are there a lot of other farms serving local employers in this way?
A: Not yet, but we're hoping to help change that. It's one of Farmer Chris' long term goals to see the CSA model of sourcing groceries directly from farms become mainstream across the Northeast region. We believe that if Employer Sponsored Farm Share programs become as common as, say, employer sponsored health insurance plans, the benefits for public health would be meaningful, and the benefits to the region's agricultural economy would be stunning.
Q: OK, I'm in! But tell me more about the delivery options and geography, please.
A: We work with a local distribution company called What Cheer Fruit & Produce to provide home delivery to your employees living anywhere in Eastern MA from Worcester eastward, including all of Greater Boston, Metro West, Cape Cod, and the North Shore; and in NYC to any address in Brooklyn and Manhattan. You can view our current delivery range for MA here, and our range for NYC here. Please let us know if you are interested in a location not currently designated in our maps in case there is additional flexibility. We can also deliver directly to your workplace itself for employees who prefer to receive their Farm Share boxes at work. Home delivery costs $10/share/week extra, while bulk delivery to your workplace is complimentary.
Q: When do you deliver?
A: Together, we’ll match a day of the week that works well for you and for our drivers.
Q: If we arrange for delivery to the office building, how does that work?
A: Our driver delivers the Farm Shares by an agreed-upon time in the day. Most sites use a self-serve model with Farm Share boxes stacked in a designated spot for employees to pickup. We provide a weekly checklist for each employee to check off their name when they pick up their share. Employees communicate directly with our office staff at the farm to coordinate their individualized pickup schedule to work around travel and vacation dates, etc.
Q: How many of my employees could participate?
A: We can currently accommodate a wide range of scales, from a couple dozen boxes per week, to several hundred, to over a thousand.
Q: Does the employer cover the whole cost of the Farm Share for its employees, or are there cost sharing options?
A: We can accommodate either approach depending on your budget and goals.
Q: Got it. But wait! Does it take a lot of time and paperwork to set up?
A: Nope and nope! We're a small farm business, with no hoops to jump through. If you have requirements for us such as liability insurance certificates, W-9's, etc., we're happy to provide whatever paperwork you need, but on our end a simple phone call to answer questions, talk delivery logistics, establish a marketing plan and payment plan, and pick a start date, is pretty much it. Payments to the farm for Employer Sponsored Farm Shares can be made with a check, credit card, or ACH transfer, or whatever payment system works best for your organization. Like all of our CSA Farm Shares, payment is normally made up-front ahead of the season, but custom payment schedules can also be accommodated.
Q: How do I let my employees know about Employer Sponsored Farm Shares?
A: We’re happy to provide physical and electronic marketing materials, including photos, flyers, logos, and more — just let us know how we can help.
Q: Are there additional ways my organization can engage with the Siena Farms' community?
A: Of course! We have matching opportunities to help support food security in Greater Boston and NYC, by sponsoring CSA memberships for local families facing hunger, through our Community Sponsored Farm Share program. We would also welcome a conversation around private events out at the farm for your employees, volunteer days, etc.
Thank you for your interest in Siena Farms! Please call us at 978-261-5365 or email us to learn more about customizing an Employer Sponsored Farm Share plan for your team.