1 min read
Getting started with pickup groups
A practical guide for shoppers who want to start buying from local farms through a neighborhood pickup group.
Pickup groups are the easiest way to get farm-direct food without the weekly farmers-market trip or a year-long CSA commitment. Here's the practical version: how they work, what to look for, and how to participate even if there isn't one in your neighborhood yet.
What a pickup group is, exactly
A pickup group is a buying club run by one local organizer. Farmers post what they have for sale that week. Shoppers order. On pickup day, the farmer drops everything at one address — the organizer sorts orders, shoppers stop by during the pickup window, and that's it.
Most groups run weekly. Some run every other week or monthly. The finder map shows the cadence on each group's pin.
What it costs
The price you see on each product is the price you pay. Farmers set their own prices. The platform fee is built into the price the farmer lists, so there's no checkout surprise.
Shipping doesn't exist — the farmer delivers in bulk to one address; the shopper drives there.
Finding a group
Use the finder and filter to pickup groups. Pin colors mark the type; clicking opens the group's page with the next pickup, the farms participating, and how to join.
If nothing's near you yet, the most useful thing you can do is start one. A spare garage, a porch, or a community space is enough. The organizer dashboard handles invitations, schedules, and pickup logistics — you focus on rounding up neighbors.
Continue reading
3 min read
Research on the American food system
A curated roundup of articles, studies, podcasts, and presentations on the decline of small farms, corporate consolidation, food miles, and food sovereignty.
2 min read
Starting a pickup group in your neighborhood
What you actually need to run a weekly pickup group — the space, the schedule, the early conversations, and the part the platform handles for you.