LOCAVORATIOUS! Adventures in Community Supported Agriculture

The primary commercial concept behind the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is that of a Share. In the same way that you can purchase a share (or shares) of a corporation, you’re doing the same for the local farmer or food producer. For a set price, you then “own” a piece of the farm, or more precisely, by purchasing the share, you become the recipient of any dividends from the harvest. Complex? It isn’t really. Each “share” entitles you to receive part of the week’s (freshly picked) crop, whatever the farmer has harvested for the week.

Some CSA’s predetermine what you get, and don’t allow you any choice. This has been one of the criticisms of CSA’s, but in their defense, it’s not reasonable to expect farmers to grow everything, all the time. Increasingly, however, the more entrepreneurial CSA’s are enabling “market style”, which means they allow you a selection of different choices each week, so as long as you get to the farm early enough, and there is some choice left, you’ll get your pick of the week’s (hopefully abundant) organic bounty. Some CSA’s also supplement their own harvest with foods by other local producers, acting as marketeers for other farmers, typically with products that are more easily transported, such as eggs, cheese…etc.

I imagine that like corporate shareholders, CSA shareholders are also subject to the vagaries of the market, and ultimately, how effective the farm business is run. So it’s quite conceivable that due to poor weather, or even poor agricultural management, the “product” won’t be high quality, and “dividends”. But at the same time, this is exactly the beauty of the whole system. Farmers have a vested interest in keeping quality extremely high (especially with the skewed expectations people have about organic food), because if they don’t, their customers will opt for something more consistent, and most definitely more convenient – the Big Box Groceries. However, where CSA shareholders have an advantage, is that they have power – because they are not faceless masses in the global supply chain of marketing boards, resellers, and distributors. Instead, in almost all cases, the relationship is direct, one-to-one, between consumer and farmer. You can, quite literally “look ‘em in the eye” – and in my opinion, there’s nothing more powerful than that.

My personal take is that the “share” concept of the CSA is really more about promoting the idea of shared ownership and support for the local farmer – so that the consumer (typical urban), can “shake the hand of the farmer who grows his or her food”. This establishes direct contact with the source for food, and builds, over time both understanding, appreciation, and community.