Q. Where is your farm? How big is it?
A. We have multiple locations in northeast Columbus. Altogether, they total about six acres. The chickens are in Mifflin Township, an unincorporated portion of East Linden. If you’re coming to visit, go to 2130 Paul Drive. Click here to see a map of all our locations!
Q. How did you come up with the name Frijolito?
A. Mayda is originally from Cuba, so we speak both English and Spanish at home. When she was pregnant with our first child and we hadn’t yet decided on a name for him, we referred to him as “el frijolito”–the little bean. We were creating this website at about the same time and needed a name for the farm, so we decided to name it after the baby. I also wanted to communicate the image of a tiny farm in a big city, and I thought the image of a little bean was a suitable way to do that.
Q. How do you pronounce it?
A. Free-hole-lee-toe
Q. Are you doing a CSA this year?
A. No. That’s not to say that we’ll never do one again, but I got tired of harvesting vegetables when the shares were due rather than waiting until they were actually ready to harvest. I got tired of worrying about whether the hens were going to lay enough eggs in a given week for me to meet my CSA obligations. I got tired of nagging Mayda to make bread at the last minute before going to market. I got tired of sacrificing cooler/fridge/truck space to haul CSA shares to the market only to have members not show up to pick up their shares. I got tired of going to the market every weekend (and paying for it), but not having enough of anything to meet demand because it was already spoken for. All this, and we were making less money, too.
Q. Are you certified organic?
A. No. We use only organic-approved methods, though. Since we sell all our products in person, we don’t need to rely on packaging to tell the story. When customers understand that we use only organic-compliant pesticides and fungicides, and that we fertilize with compost, they understand that our food is just as good as any that carry the Organic label. This being the case, there’s just no point in all the paperwork and paying more than $700 a year for a name.
Q. Do you ship?
No. We do offer deliveries in the Columbus area, though. For orders under $20, there’s a $5 delivery charge (price subject to change). Delivery is free on orders over $20.
Q. At what stores can I buy your products?
A. Presently, our products are not available in any stores. Two Caterers sometimes uses our eggs and chicken, though. Look for us at a farmers market, come to our house (call ahead, please), or call or email for delivery. See our “Contact Us” page for locations and directions.
Q. Do you have _________ ?
A. Please see our products page.
Q. Do you give your chickens hormones?
A. No, and neither does anybody else…at least not in this country. Giving hormones to poultry intended for human consumption has been illegal in the United States for decades. That’s a beef & dairy thing. The issue in poultry is antibiotics, not hormones, and we don’t use them.
Q. What vegetables will you have this year?
A. See our produce page.
Have a question? Send us an email. If it’s common enough, we’ll add it to this list.