Lehigh Launches CSA and Achieves Sustainability Strategic Plan 2030 Goal!
Goal 5 in the Health & Wellness section of Lehigh’s Sustainability Strategic Plan 2030 is to “partner with a local farm or distributor and pilot a Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) program by 2022”. This goal was achieved in July of 2022 with the launch of the Willow Haven Market Box CSA, which is tailored specifically for Lehigh faculty and staff.
The process of bringing this goal to fruition began in 2020 for Audrey McSain, the Director of Sustainability. She says bringing a CSA to campus faculty and staff is important to Lehigh’s Sustainability Strategic Plan because “health and quality of life greatly impact employee satisfaction, student engagement and the productivity of the campus community. Providing fresh, local, healthy food through this program is one example of Lehigh creating opportunities that improve the health and wellness of our community.”
McSain partnered with Mary Jo McNulty, of Human Resources, and Tessa Reuben, of Willow Haven Farm, to bring fresh, local, and healthy foods right to campus each week. The customizable CSA boxes contain a wide range of farm products for “year-round deliveries with flexible scheduling” says Reuben.
Erin Kintzer, the Director of Real Estate Services, has been “really enjoying the farm share” and appreciates that she is able to take part in supporting local farmers and food producers. She especially enjoys being able to “swap out items” and the fact that the “variety of selection is huge - from veggies to chocolate, pork sausage to sourdough bread.” She also noted that the “blueberry pancake mix is amazing!”
If you haven’t already, sign-up is open and available online. Learn more.
