Co-Ops Bolster Local Economies

Farmer-Consumer Co-ops Bolster Local Economies

Families volunteer at Verna Kragnes CSA, one of Wisconsin's first and the catalyst for several more. Photo by T.L. Gettings/Rodale Images

Families in about 1,000 Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) ventures throughout North America regularly receive fresh, wholesome produce while helping support area farmers. SARE-funded studies in the Midwest and Northeast are documenting CSA characteristics and advantages and helping CSAs improve their planning and viability. CSAs guarantee farmers more equitable incomes regardless of yield and weather and offer consumers fresh produce, usually weekly, for an annual fee. Surveys and case studies in Wisconsin and Minnesota show that a six-acre CSA farm raising about 16 tons of produce for 150 shareholders has an economic impact of $270,000 annually. From 55 to 93 percent of those dollars remain in the area, supporting potentially nine or 10 jobs-two to three times the effect of buying comparable amounts of food from area supermarkets. "The figures imply three or four nonfarmers would be needed to replace one farmer's economic benefit to a community," says an economist assisting with the project. Shareholders typically save $300 to $1,000 yearly compared with what they would spend elsewhere for similar quantities of food, a Massachusetts study's preliminary results indicate. So CSA managers could factor into share prices more fixed costs, including equipment purchases and land use. Helping new members adapt to CSAs' seasonal harvests and deepening consumer understanding of food systems can increase renewal rates. Thousands of CSA members and hundreds of farmers gain from the SARE projects' workshops, conferences, field days and other mentoring. SARE also funds a widely distributed annual publication, the CSA Farm Network, linking CSA groups throughout the U.S. and Canada. (North Central & Northeast Region projects LNC93-61 and LNE95-63.)

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