Frequently Asked Questions

FAQs

1. When do I get my milk bottle returns?
When you return your rinsed milk and other dairy bottles to your pick-up location, you will give these to your Grasshoppers representative. Be sure that s/he records them correctly on the bottle returns tally sheet and that you both initial that week’s tally. The credits are tallied on a monthly basis and applied toward your account for future purchases.

2. I missed my pick-up. How can I get my food?
You can come to Grasshoppers’ warehouse at 1501 Portland Ave. and pick up your food on Thursdays from 1 – 6:30pm, Fridays from 10am – 2pm, Saturdays from 11am – 1pm, or Mondays from 10am – 2pm. On Monday afternoons a tally is made of all the shares that have not been picked up from the previous week, and a charitable donation is made of leftover items. Our storage facilities are not large enough to handle holding onto multiple weeks of products for each person, so we ask that you or a friend retrieve your food by the Monday at 2pm following your missed pick-up.

3. I’m going on vacation, can I get a credit on my account?
You can go “on vacation” with Grasshoppers up to six (6) weeks throughout the year. You can login to your account and schedule your vacation dates or you can call our offices and make these arrangements. We ask that you schedule your vacation with us two (2) weeks in advance. This will allow Grasshoppers enough time to put a hold on your weekly groceries and order less food from our farmers. You will not be charged for weeks you go “on vacation” with us. If you have paid in full, then this will show as a credit on your account to use moving forward.

4. Last week I didn’t receive one of my items. When will I get it?
Be sure to alert the Grasshoppers representative at your pick-up location so they can note the missing item. It will be brought to you with the next week’s order, or you may request a credit to your account. You can always come to our facility during regular business hours to pick up the item if you need it before the next week.

5. I have moved and would like to change my pick-up location. Is that possible?
You can login to customize your account based on your needs. If you have moved or changed jobs and need to change your pick-up location it’s no problem. We ask that you log into your account, email or call our offices no later than one (1) week in advance in order to change your pick-up location. We will have your order ready to be picked up at your new location the following week.

6. What is a CSA?
CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. The traditional CSA involves a group of individuals that pledge to support a farming operation, usually a small family farm, so that growers and consumers share in the risks and benefits of food production. In this model, an investment is made by the consumer at the start of the season so a farmer/producer can buy seeds, equipment, hire labor, etc. During the growing season, members receive a weekly delivery of their “share” of the harvest, whether large or small. Many farms today no longer follow this purest form of CSAs in which the members reap the entire harvest, but have diversified into multiple markets, such as farmers’ markets, restaurants, and distributors like Grasshoppers. This allows the farmer to benefit more when the harvest is bountiful. Grasshoppers has evolved this model yet again in order to increase the accessibility of community supported agriculture to more consumers. By not requiring an upfront investment for the entire season, which is out of the reach of many consumers, by sourcing from multiple family-scale producers to improve the convenience of a “one-stop shop” for local foods, by providing customization and choice to meet the individual needs of diverse consumers, and by allowing the flexibility to take a pause when needed or change one’s subscription to better fit a family’s needs, Grasshoppers is trying to make farm fresh, local food more accessible to more people.

7. Is Grasshoppers a CSA?
We are not a traditional CSA; however, we do promote “community supported agriculture” by supporting family-scale farmers in Kentucky and Southern Indiana. We do not grow food ourselves, and we are not in a position to pay the farmers up front. The benefit that our farmers receive is in having a secure market to sell their food, and more time to farm, rather than be focused on marketing and distribution themselves. Based on the commitment that you make to us in terms of your subscription, we can plan with our farmers to offer them a reliable market.

8. What will I receive in my subscription?
When signing up with Grasshoppers you are creating your own personal grocery basket. You choose from many weekly or bi-weekly options, such as seasonal produce in a large or smaller box; non-homogenized, low-heat pasteurized milk; pastured eggs and meats, such as beef, chicken, and pork, artisan cow and goat cheeses; bread baked daily; rotating staple items from the farm; locally roasted, certified organic and free trade coffees; and delicious desserts by Stellar Sweets. After you have designed your standing order to meet your personal food needs, you can use our add-on order system to enhance your weekly or bi-weekly order with Grasshoppers by purchasing items for one time only.

9. What produce can I expect to receive and how do I use it?
By signing up for a produce subscription you are agreeing to eat locally grown, seasonal food. That being said, you can expect to receive a variety of different vegetables and fruits throughout the summer. This will include favorites such as potatoes, tomatoes, broccoli, strawberries, blueberries, sweet corn, apples, pears, salad mix, and carrots, as well as more exotic vegetables like totsoi, celeriac, daikon radishes, and mustard greens. Our weekly newsletters include storage tips and recipes on how to cook all your produce. For a sense of when different produce is available, see the KY Proud seasonal produce chart.

10. Who is growing my produce?
Family farms throughout Kentucky and Southern Indiana provide Grasshoppers’ members with fresh, local produce each week.

11. What agricultural practices are employed?

We source as much certified organic or chemical free produce as possible. We use the weekly newsletter to list who is growing which item and where the farm is located. If by chance we cannot source organic or chemical free then we will purchase from a conventional grower. This is also noted in the weekly newsletter along with the last time the produce was sprayed. Our farmers also treat their animals humanely and raise them on pasture, not in confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs). They are not fed hormones, steroids, or unnecessary antibiotics. Sourcing non-GMO is getting more and more challenging in this country as GMO and non-GMO seeds are increasingly intermingled. While we seek out non-GMO sources, we cannot make guarantees about how much of our produce is truly non-GMO.

12. What if I need extra food?
Each week you can log into your account to make an add-on order This order must be placed no later than 9am Thursday mornings in order to process and ship with your delivery the next week. You can choose from a variety of local produce, meats, dairy, cheeses and grocery staples that are produced locally and meet our agricultural practice guidelines.

13. Where do I pick up my food?
We have over a dozen convenient pick-up locations or call us to help you organize your own group location. Please bring re-usable bags or a box to collect any food other than produce, which will be packed for you in a box.

14. What if I can’t make my pick-up?
You can come down to our warehouse at 1501 Portland Avenue after your scheduled pick-up time on Thursdays from 1-6:30pm, Fridays from 10am – 2pm, Saturdays from 11am-1pm, or Mondays from 10am-2pm, or we will see that it goes to food-insecure people here in Louisville. If you need to permanently change your pick-up location, just make the change in your log-in account, email us at thefarmer@grasshoppersdistribution.com or give us a call at 708-1881.

15. What commitment am I making?
Community supported agriculture is the concept of people supporting local, family farms with a direct investment, and sharing in the return of the harvest. Your relationship with the farm includes your enjoyment of the fresh seasonal food that is delivered every week, and sharing in the risks of the harvest each season. Grasshoppers has improvised on this model to offer a multi-farm program that provides beef, chicken, pork, milk, cheese, and eggs as well as produce. Grasshoppers minimizes the risk to you and adds to your variety each week by buying from multiple, local farms. Meanwhile, the farms have a secure market throughout the year. Your investment helps sustain family farming as a way of life and connects you to the highest quality of healthful, local food. Farmers plan months in advance to provide you with their food. It is our hope that you will incorporate eating locally and seasonally into your permanent lifestyle, taking “vacations” from your subscription as needed. If you need to cancel your subscription, we ask for a minimum of one month’s notice.