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| csas:community-supported_agriculture [2026/03/25 20:44] – [Further resources] Katja Durrani | csas:community-supported_agriculture [2026/03/26 18:33] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1 |
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| This topic is part of [[gt:community|Community & culture]], [[gt:economy|Economy & finance]], [[gt:food|Food & drink]] and [[gt:gardening|Gardening, smallholding & farming]]. | This topic is part of [[gt:community|Community & culture]], [[gt:economy|Economy & finance]], [[gt:food|Food & drink]] and [[gt:gardening|Gardening, smallholding & farming]]. |
| # Community-supported agriculture | ====== Community-supported agriculture ====== |
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| ## What is community-supported agriculture? | ===== What is community-supported agriculture? ===== |
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| Community-supported agriculture (CSA) has no standardised model or definition (like organic certification, for example), but is a method of food production which supports a direct partnership between farmers and consumers in which the responsibilities, risks and rewards of farming are shared. A particular CSA group could be farmer-led, where local people invest in a farm or [smallholding](/smho/smallholding), and receive a share of the produce; or it could be consumer-led, where local people source a piece of land and produce food for themselves. There are also hybrid groups that have a core membership involved with the land / food production and other members that have more of a monetary relationship with the food producers. | Community-supported agriculture (CSA) has no standardised model or definition (like organic certification, for example), but is a method of food production which supports a direct partnership between farmers and consumers in which the responsibilities, risks and rewards of farming are shared. A particular CSA group could be farmer-led, where local people invest in a farm or [smallholding](/smho/smallholding), and receive a share of the produce; or it could be consumer-led, where local people source a piece of land and produce food for themselves. There are also hybrid groups that have a core membership involved with the land / food production and other members that have more of a monetary relationship with the food producers. |
| CSA is mainly about fruit and veg, but can also include eggs, honey, bread, meat, firewood or even fish. CSAs are usually local, but not always. In large cities where there are no local farmers, food may be brought in from selected farms elsewhere in the country - as close to the city as possible, to provide an alternative to unseasonal food flown from the other side of the world. In the US, CSAs tend to be less 'hands-on' than in the UK, where members are encouraged to help with food production. In the States, the relationship with food producers tends to be more monetary than physical, although of course this is still a great help for farmers. | CSA is mainly about fruit and veg, but can also include eggs, honey, bread, meat, firewood or even fish. CSAs are usually local, but not always. In large cities where there are no local farmers, food may be brought in from selected farms elsewhere in the country - as close to the city as possible, to provide an alternative to unseasonal food flown from the other side of the world. In the US, CSAs tend to be less 'hands-on' than in the UK, where members are encouraged to help with food production. In the States, the relationship with food producers tends to be more monetary than physical, although of course this is still a great help for farmers. |
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| ## What are the benefits of community-supported agriculture? | ===== What are the benefits of community-supported agriculture? ===== |
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| ### for food producers | ==== for food producers ==== |
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| - CSA schemes provide a regular income and better cash flow for farmers so that they can plan more effectively and sort out finances early in the season, before the demanding work schedule starts. | - CSA schemes provide a regular income and better cash flow for farmers so that they can plan more effectively and sort out finances early in the season, before the demanding work schedule starts. |
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| ### for local people | ==== for local people ==== |
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| - better food; and often cost effective when compared to supermarket food (which of course has none of the benefits mentioned here). | - better food; and often cost effective when compared to supermarket food (which of course has none of the benefits mentioned here). |
| </WRAP> | </WRAP> |
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| ### for ecology | ==== for ecology ==== |
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| - lower food miles | - lower food miles |
| </WRAP> | </WRAP> |
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| ### for society | ==== for society ==== |
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| - being in charge of a food supply locally is a hugely powerful way to weaken the grip of the corporate sector on one of life's essentials | - being in charge of a food supply locally is a hugely powerful way to weaken the grip of the corporate sector on one of life's essentials |
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| ## What can I do? | ===== What can I do? ===== |
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| Become a member of your nearest CSA scheme. Do an internet search for 'community-supported agriculture' plus your country, find your national network and through them, find your local group. Or take the direct route and search for CSA plus the name of your town. The link for the UK is [here](https://communitysupportedagriculture.org.uk/find-a-csa/). If there isn't a local group, well, there's a challenge for you - someone has to start one! You probably know a lot of likely people in your area who'd be interested. You could start talking to local farmers and tell them about CSA. | Become a member of your nearest CSA scheme. Do an internet search for 'community-supported agriculture' plus your country, find your national network and through them, find your local group. Or take the direct route and search for CSA plus the name of your town. The link for the UK is [here](https://communitysupportedagriculture.org.uk/find-a-csa/). If there isn't a local group, well, there's a challenge for you - someone has to start one! You probably know a lot of likely people in your area who'd be interested. You could start talking to local farmers and tell them about CSA. |
| </WRAP> | </WRAP> |
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| ## In the UK | ===== In the UK ===== |
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| The Community-supported Agriculture Network in the UK was supported by the Soil Association, who produced a report in 2011 on the state of CSA in the UK. From this came the idea for a network. A national conference and a crowdfunding campaign followed and the network was born, along with a website, currently featuring around 100 groups. There are probably other groups out there that are not part of the network, some of whom won't even be aware that they are a CSA group. The movement is as yet very grass-roots. | The Community-supported Agriculture Network in the UK was supported by the Soil Association, who produced a report in 2011 on the state of CSA in the UK. From this came the idea for a network. A national conference and a crowdfunding campaign followed and the network was born, along with a website, currently featuring around 100 groups. There are probably other groups out there that are not part of the network, some of whom won't even be aware that they are a CSA group. The movement is as yet very grass-roots. |
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| If you see the weighting toward large-scale agriculture as unfair and would prefer to support small farmers instead, try joining your local CSA, help campaign with the [Landworkers' Alliance](http://landworkersalliance.org.uk/) and the [Campaign for Real Farming](http://www.campaignforrealfarming.org/) or go [WWOOFing](http://www.wwoof.org.uk/). | If you see the weighting toward large-scale agriculture as unfair and would prefer to support small farmers instead, try joining your local CSA, help campaign with the [Landworkers' Alliance](http://landworkersalliance.org.uk/) and the [Campaign for Real Farming](http://www.campaignforrealfarming.org/) or go [WWOOFing](http://www.wwoof.org.uk/). |
| ## Forum | ===== Forum ===== |
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| This topic belongs to the section [[gt:community|Community & culture]]. You can ask questions or add information on the corresponding [Forum section](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/community). | This topic belongs to the section [[gt:community|Community & culture]]. You can ask questions or add information on the corresponding [Forum section](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/community). |
| * [[gt:food|Food & drink]] (Forum: [Food & drink](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/food)) | * [[gt:food|Food & drink]] (Forum: [Food & drink](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/food)) |
| * [[gt:gardening|Gardening, smallholding & farming]] (Forum: [Gardening, smallholding & farming](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/gardening)) | * [[gt:gardening|Gardening, smallholding & farming]] (Forum: [Gardening, smallholding & farming](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/gardening)) |
| ## Further resources | |
| | ===== Further resources ===== |
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| - [Community Supported Agriculture Network UK](https://communitysupportedagriculture.org.uk/) | - [Community Supported Agriculture Network UK](https://communitysupportedagriculture.org.uk/) |
| - [Deep Agroecology](https://deepagroecology.org/2012/01/09/unraveling-the-csa-number-conundrum/) - counting CSA schemes | - [Deep Agroecology](https://deepagroecology.org/2012/01/09/unraveling-the-csa-number-conundrum/) - counting CSA schemes |
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| ## Related topics | ===== Related topics ===== |
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| - [Low-impact food & drink](lifo:food) | - [Low-impact food & drink](lifo:food) |
| - [Veg box schemes](vegb:veg_box_schemes) | - [Veg box schemes](vegb:veg_box_schemes) |
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| ## Specialist curators of this topic | ===== Specialist curators of this topic ===== |
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