Community-supported agriculture
Encyclopedia
Community-supported agriculture, a form of an alternative food network, (in Canada Community Shared Agriculture) (CSA) is a socio-economic model of agriculture
and food distribution
. A CSA consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a farming operation where the growers and consumers share the risks and benefits of food production. CSAs usually consist of a system of weekly delivery or pick-up of vegetables and fruit, in a vegetable box scheme, and sometimes includes dairy products and meat.
and experiments with community agriculture took place on farms using biodynamic agriculture
. In 1965 mothers in Japan who were concerned about the rise of imported food and the loss of arable land started the first CSA projects called Teikei
(提携) in Japanese – most likely unrelated to the developments in Europe.
The idea started to take root in the United States in 1984 when Jan VanderTuin brought the concept of CSA to North America from Europe. At the same time German Biodynamic farmer Trauger Groh and colleagues founded the Temple-Wilton Community Farm in Wilton, New Hampshire. VanderTuin had co-founded a community-supported agricultural project named Topinambur located near Zurich, Switzerland. Coinage of the term "community-supported agriculture" stems from Vander Tuin and the Great Barrington CSA that he co-founded with its proprietor Robyn Van En
. Since that time community supported farms have been organized throughout North America — mainly in the Northwest, the Pacific coast, the Upper-Midwest and Canada
. North America
now has at least 13,000 CSA farms of which 12,549 are in the US according to the US Department of Agriculture in 2007. Some examples of larger and well established CSAs in the US are Angelic Organics
and Roxbury Farm. CSA's have even become popular in urban environments as proven by the New York City Coalition Against Hunger's own CSA program that maintains locations in all five boroughs of the city. The largest subscription CSA with over 13,000 families is Farm Fresh To You
in Capay Valley
, California.
or biodynamic farming
methods, and a shared risk membership–marketing structure. This kind of farming operates with a much greater degree of involvement of consumers and other stakeholders than usual — resulting in a stronger consumer-producer relationship. The core design includes developing a cohesive consumer group that is willing to fund a whole season’s budget in order to get quality foods. The system has many variations on how the farm budget is supported by the consumers and how the producers then deliver the foods. CSA theory purports that the more a farm embraces whole-farm, whole-budget support, the more it can focus on quality and reduce the risk of food waste or financial loss.
an and North America
n forms CSAs focus on having:
Meaning that individuals, families, &/or groups do not directly pay for x pounds or kilograms of produce but rather support the budget of the whole farm and receive weekly what is seasonally ripe
.
This approach eliminates the marketing risks, costs for the producer and an enormous amount of time and labor, and allows producers to focus on quality care of the soils, crops, animals and co-workers as well as on serving the customers. There is financial stability in this system which allows for thorough planning on the part of the farmer.
Some farms are dedicated entirely to their CSA while others also sell through on-farm stands, farmers' market
s and other channels. Most CSAs are owned by the farmers while some offer shares in the farm as well as the harvest. Consumers have organized their own CSA projects and have gone as far as leasing land and hiring farmers. Many CSAs have a core group of members that assist with CSA administration. Some require or offer the option of members providing labor as part of the share price.
Some CSAs have evolved into social enterprise
s employing a number of local staff, improving the lot of local farmers and educating the local community about organic and ecologically responsible farming.
Typically CSA farms are small, independent, labor-intensive family farms. By providing a guaranteed market through prepaid annual sales consumers essentially help finance farming operations. This allows farmers to not only focus on quality growing but can also level the playing field in a food market that favors large-scale, industrialized agriculture
over local food.
Vegetables and fruit are the most common CSA crops. Many CSAs practice ecological
, organic or biodynamic agriculture
by avoiding pesticides and inorganic fertilizers. The cost of a share is usually competitively priced when compared to the same amount of vegetables conventionally grown – partly because the cost of distribution is lowered.
and Canada
shares are usually provided weekly with pick-ups or deliveries occurring on a designated day and time. CSA subscribers often live in towns and cities – local drop-off locations, convenient to a number of members, are organized, often at the homes of members. Shares are also usually available on-farm.
CSAs are different from buying clubs and home delivery services where the consumer buys a specific product at a predetermined price. CSA members purchase only what the farm is able to successfully grow and harvest sharing some of the growing risk with the farmer. If the strawberry crop is not successful, for example, the CSA member will share the burden of the crop failure by receiving fewer, or lower quality, strawberries for the season. CSA members are often more actively involved in the growing and distribution process through shared newsletters and recipes, farm visits, farm work-days, advance purchases of shares and picking up their shares of produce.
Some families have enrolled in subscription CSAs in which a family pays a fixed price for each delivery and can start or stop the service as they wish. This kind of arrangement is also referred to as crop-sharing or box schemes. In such cases the farmer may supplement each box with produce brought in from neighboring farms for a wider variety. Thus there is a distinction between the farmers selling pre-paid shares in the upcoming season's harvest or a weekly subscription that represents that week's harvest. In all cases participants purchase a portion of the farm's harvest either by the season or by the week in return for what the farm is able to successfully grow and harvest.
An advantage of the close consumer-producer relationship is increased freshness of the produce because it does not have to be shipped long distances. The close proximity of the farm to the members also helps the environment by reducing pollution caused by transporting the produce. CSAs often include recipes and farm news in each box in which tours of the farm and work days are announced. Over a period of time consumers get to know who is producing their food and what production methods are used.
Share prices can vary dramatically depending on location. Variables also include the length of share season and average quantity and selection of food per share. As a rough average, in North America, a basic share may be $350–550 for a season lasting for 14–20 weeks in June to September (or October). The produce would be enough of each included crop for at least two people consisting of perhaps 8–12 common garden vegetables. Seasonal eating is implied as shares are usually based on the outdoor growing season
which means a smaller selection at the beginning, and perhaps the end, of the period as well as a changing variety as the season progresses. Some CSA programs offer different share sizes or choices of share periods e.g. full-season and peak season.
The film The Real Dirt on Farmer John
documents the resurrection of a family farm
through its conversion to a CSA model.
Orti Solidali uses a sustainable agronomic method for her a food production and creates goods while providing living wages and fair working conditions to the producers. With the aim of reduction of economic growth, also known as degrowth, they transition to a new economic system based on environmental protection and social equity.
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and food distribution
Food distribution
Food distribution, a method of distributing or transporting food or drink from one place to another, is a very important factor in public nutrition. Where it breaks down, famine, malnutrition or illness can occur...
. A CSA consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a farming operation where the growers and consumers share the risks and benefits of food production. CSAs usually consist of a system of weekly delivery or pick-up of vegetables and fruit, in a vegetable box scheme, and sometimes includes dairy products and meat.
History
Community-supported agriculture began in the early 1960s in Germany, Switzerland and Japan as a response to concerns about food safety and the urbanization of agricultural land. In the 1960s groups of consumers and farmers in Europe formed cooperative partnerships to fund farming and pay the full costs of ecologically sound and socially equitable agriculture. In Europe, many of the CSA style farms were inspired by the economic ideas of Rudolf SteinerRudolf Steiner
Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner was an Austrian philosopher, social reformer, architect, and esotericist. He gained initial recognition as a literary critic and cultural philosopher...
and experiments with community agriculture took place on farms using biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that emphasizes the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. Biodynamic farming has much in common with other organic approaches, such as emphasizing the use of manures and composts...
. In 1965 mothers in Japan who were concerned about the rise of imported food and the loss of arable land started the first CSA projects called Teikei
Teikei
is a system of community-supported agriculture in Japan, where consumers purchase food directly from farmers. Teikei is closely associated with small-scale, local, organic farming, and volunteer-based, non-profit partnerships between producers and consumers. Millions of Japanese consumers...
(提携) in Japanese – most likely unrelated to the developments in Europe.
The idea started to take root in the United States in 1984 when Jan VanderTuin brought the concept of CSA to North America from Europe. At the same time German Biodynamic farmer Trauger Groh and colleagues founded the Temple-Wilton Community Farm in Wilton, New Hampshire. VanderTuin had co-founded a community-supported agricultural project named Topinambur located near Zurich, Switzerland. Coinage of the term "community-supported agriculture" stems from Vander Tuin and the Great Barrington CSA that he co-founded with its proprietor Robyn Van En
Robyn Van En
-Community Supported Agriculture:Robyn Van En was a founder of Community Supported Agriculture , an organization that helps organic farms cope with the expenses of organic farming methods. She hosted the organization's first initiative on her Indian Line Farm in Massachusetts...
. Since that time community supported farms have been organized throughout North America — mainly in the Northwest, the Pacific coast, the Upper-Midwest and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
now has at least 13,000 CSA farms of which 12,549 are in the US according to the US Department of Agriculture in 2007. Some examples of larger and well established CSAs in the US are Angelic Organics
Angelic Organics
Angelic Organics, located in Caledonia, Illinois, is one of the largest Community Supported Agriculture farms in the United States, feeding more than 1400 families - over 5000 individuals. It grows organic food in accordance with biodynamic principles since 1990 and has operated as a CSA since 1993...
and Roxbury Farm. CSA's have even become popular in urban environments as proven by the New York City Coalition Against Hunger's own CSA program that maintains locations in all five boroughs of the city. The largest subscription CSA with over 13,000 families is Farm Fresh To You
Farm Fresh To You
Farm Fresh To You is a subscription Community Supported Agriculture provider of organic produce based in Capay Valley, California. The farm was started in 1976 by two back-to-the-landers, Martin Barnes and Kathleen Barsotti who were raised in California suburbs.Inspired by University of...
in Capay Valley
Capay Valley
Capay Valley is a mostly rural valley west of the Capay Hills, and northwest of Sacramento in Yolo County, California, United States.Cache Creek flows through the valley and the Capay Valley AVA...
, California.
The CSA system
CSAs generally focus on the production of high quality foods for a local community, often using organicOrganic farming
Organic farming is the form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, green manure, compost and biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and control pests on a farm...
or biodynamic farming
Biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that emphasizes the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. Biodynamic farming has much in common with other organic approaches, such as emphasizing the use of manures and composts...
methods, and a shared risk membership–marketing structure. This kind of farming operates with a much greater degree of involvement of consumers and other stakeholders than usual — resulting in a stronger consumer-producer relationship. The core design includes developing a cohesive consumer group that is willing to fund a whole season’s budget in order to get quality foods. The system has many variations on how the farm budget is supported by the consumers and how the producers then deliver the foods. CSA theory purports that the more a farm embraces whole-farm, whole-budget support, the more it can focus on quality and reduce the risk of food waste or financial loss.
Structure
In its most formal and structured EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n forms CSAs focus on having:
- a transparent, whole season budget for producing a specified wide array of products for a set number of weeks a year;
- a common-pricing system where producers and consumers discuss and democratically agree to pricing based on the acceptance of the budget; and
- a ‘shared risk and reward’ agreement, i.e. that the consumers receive what the farmers grow even with the vagaries of seasonal growing.
Meaning that individuals, families, &/or groups do not directly pay for x pounds or kilograms of produce but rather support the budget of the whole farm and receive weekly what is seasonally ripe
Seasonal Food
Seasonality of food refers to the times of year when a given type food is at its peak, either in terms of harvest or its flavour. This is usually the time when the item is the cheapest and the freshest on the market. The food's peak time in terms of harvest usually coincides with when its flavour...
.
This approach eliminates the marketing risks, costs for the producer and an enormous amount of time and labor, and allows producers to focus on quality care of the soils, crops, animals and co-workers as well as on serving the customers. There is financial stability in this system which allows for thorough planning on the part of the farmer.
Some farms are dedicated entirely to their CSA while others also sell through on-farm stands, farmers' market
Farmers' market
A farmers' market consists of individual vendors—mostly farmers—who set up booths, tables or stands, outdoors or indoors, to sell produce, meat products, fruits and sometimes prepared foods and beverages...
s and other channels. Most CSAs are owned by the farmers while some offer shares in the farm as well as the harvest. Consumers have organized their own CSA projects and have gone as far as leasing land and hiring farmers. Many CSAs have a core group of members that assist with CSA administration. Some require or offer the option of members providing labor as part of the share price.
Some CSAs have evolved into social enterprise
Social enterprise
A social enterprise is an organization that applies business strategies to achieving philanthropic goals. Social enterprises can be structured as a for-profit or non-profit....
s employing a number of local staff, improving the lot of local farmers and educating the local community about organic and ecologically responsible farming.
Typically CSA farms are small, independent, labor-intensive family farms. By providing a guaranteed market through prepaid annual sales consumers essentially help finance farming operations. This allows farmers to not only focus on quality growing but can also level the playing field in a food market that favors large-scale, industrialized agriculture
Industrial agriculture
Industrial farming is a form of modern farming that refers to the industrialized production of livestock, poultry, fish, and crops. The methods of industrial agriculture are technoscientific, economic, and political...
over local food.
Vegetables and fruit are the most common CSA crops. Many CSAs practice ecological
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
, organic or biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that emphasizes the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. Biodynamic farming has much in common with other organic approaches, such as emphasizing the use of manures and composts...
by avoiding pesticides and inorganic fertilizers. The cost of a share is usually competitively priced when compared to the same amount of vegetables conventionally grown – partly because the cost of distribution is lowered.
Distribution and marketing methods
A distinctive feature of CSAs is the method of distribution. In the U.S.United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
shares are usually provided weekly with pick-ups or deliveries occurring on a designated day and time. CSA subscribers often live in towns and cities – local drop-off locations, convenient to a number of members, are organized, often at the homes of members. Shares are also usually available on-farm.
CSAs are different from buying clubs and home delivery services where the consumer buys a specific product at a predetermined price. CSA members purchase only what the farm is able to successfully grow and harvest sharing some of the growing risk with the farmer. If the strawberry crop is not successful, for example, the CSA member will share the burden of the crop failure by receiving fewer, or lower quality, strawberries for the season. CSA members are often more actively involved in the growing and distribution process through shared newsletters and recipes, farm visits, farm work-days, advance purchases of shares and picking up their shares of produce.
Some families have enrolled in subscription CSAs in which a family pays a fixed price for each delivery and can start or stop the service as they wish. This kind of arrangement is also referred to as crop-sharing or box schemes. In such cases the farmer may supplement each box with produce brought in from neighboring farms for a wider variety. Thus there is a distinction between the farmers selling pre-paid shares in the upcoming season's harvest or a weekly subscription that represents that week's harvest. In all cases participants purchase a portion of the farm's harvest either by the season or by the week in return for what the farm is able to successfully grow and harvest.
An advantage of the close consumer-producer relationship is increased freshness of the produce because it does not have to be shipped long distances. The close proximity of the farm to the members also helps the environment by reducing pollution caused by transporting the produce. CSAs often include recipes and farm news in each box in which tours of the farm and work days are announced. Over a period of time consumers get to know who is producing their food and what production methods are used.
Share prices can vary dramatically depending on location. Variables also include the length of share season and average quantity and selection of food per share. As a rough average, in North America, a basic share may be $350–550 for a season lasting for 14–20 weeks in June to September (or October). The produce would be enough of each included crop for at least two people consisting of perhaps 8–12 common garden vegetables. Seasonal eating is implied as shares are usually based on the outdoor growing season
Growing season
In botany, horticulture, and agriculture the growing season is the period of each year when native plants and ornamental plants grow; and when crops can be grown....
which means a smaller selection at the beginning, and perhaps the end, of the period as well as a changing variety as the season progresses. Some CSA programs offer different share sizes or choices of share periods e.g. full-season and peak season.
The film The Real Dirt on Farmer John
The Real Dirt on Farmer John
The Real Dirt on Farmer John is a 2005 documentary film directed by Taggart Siegel about the life of Midwestern farmer John Peterson, operator of Angelic Organics.-Awards:The Real Dirt on Farmer John has won awards at over 30 film festivals...
documents the resurrection of a family farm
Family farm
A family farm is a farm owned and operated by a family, and often passed down from generation to generation. It is the basic unit of the mostly agricultural economy of much of human history and continues to be so in developing nations...
through its conversion to a CSA model.
Similar experiences worldwide
The term CSA is mostly used in the USA but a variety of similar production and economic sub-systems are in use worldwide:- Association pour le maintien de l’agriculture paysanne (AMAP) in France,
- Agriculture soutenue par la communauté (ASC) in Québec,
- TeikeiTeikeiis a system of community-supported agriculture in Japan, where consumers purchase food directly from farmers. Teikei is closely associated with small-scale, local, organic farming, and volunteer-based, non-profit partnerships between producers and consumers. Millions of Japanese consumers...
(提携) in Japan, - Reciproco in Portugal,
- Landwirtschaftsgemeinschaftshof in Germany,
- Andelslandbruk in Norway,
- Gruppi di Acquisto SolidaleGruppi di Acquisto SolidaleG.A.S. is an acronym for the Italian expression Gruppi di Acquisto Solidale . Usually, a buying group is set up from a number of consumers who cooperate in order to buy food and other commonly used goods directly from the producers or from big retailers at a discounted rate.-The meaning of the word...
(GAS) in Italy, (see also, Ethical purchasing groups), - Съпричастно земеделие in Bulgaria,
- Asociația pentru Susținerea Agriculturii Țărănești (ASAT) in Romania.
Solidarity Gardens
Orti Solidali (meaning Solidarity Gardens) is an example of a CSA in Italy. Reasons for participating are mostly on an ethical basis. The strong commitment of participants protected the development of the network from the market until properly established. Ethical values, cognitive frames, relational codes inside the network shape and constitute this protective environment.Orti Solidali uses a sustainable agronomic method for her a food production and creates goods while providing living wages and fair working conditions to the producers. With the aim of reduction of economic growth, also known as degrowth, they transition to a new economic system based on environmental protection and social equity.
See also
- Civic agricultureCivic agricultureCivic Agriculture is the trend towards locally based agriculture and food production that is tightly linked to a community's social and economic development....
- Community supported fisheryCommunity supported fisheryA community supported fishery is a shore-side community of people collaborating with the local fishing community. Tailored after the community supported agriculture model, a CSF contributes freshly caught local seafood to the local markets while providing fishermen with a better price on less catch...
- Development Supported AgricultureDevelopment Supported AgricultureDevelopment Supported Agriculture is a nascent movement in real estate development that preserves and invests in agricultural land use. As farmland is lost due to the challenging economics of farming and the pressures of the real estate industry, DSA attempts to reconcile the need for development...
- Farmers' marketFarmers' marketA farmers' market consists of individual vendors—mostly farmers—who set up booths, tables or stands, outdoors or indoors, to sell produce, meat products, fruits and sometimes prepared foods and beverages...
- Local foodLocal foodLocal food or the local food movement is a "collaborative effort to build more locally based, self-reliant food economies - one in which sustainable food production, processing, distribution, and consumption is integrated to enhance the economic, environmental and social health of a particular...
- Sustainable agricultureSustainable agricultureSustainable agriculture is the practice of farming using principles of ecology, the study of relationships between organisms and their environment...
- Vegetable box scheme
- WWOOFWWOOFWorldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms , also known as "Willing Workers On Organic Farms", is a loose network of national organisations that facilitate placement of volunteers on organic farms. While there are WWOOF hosts in 99 countries around the world, no central list or organisation...
External links
- Directory of US & Canadian CSAs
- National Agricultural Library of the U.S. Department of Agriculture CSA resource
- Community Supported Agriculture Benefits Body and Budget
- Getting Started with a CSA
- Comprehensive map of CSAs in the United States
- Going beyond CSAs with Community Food Systems
- Community Supported Agriculture Management System
- Anusha's Favorite Farms
- CSA page on Facebook