Community Supported Agriculture (CSAS), Farmers’ Perspective

Community supported agriculture (CSA) is a food production and distribution structure that promotes a relationship between farmers and the communities they serve. Originally a form of alternative agriculture that originated in Asia and Europe and operated at a very local level, the CSA concept has spread throughout the United States and expanded to the regional level. The 2012 Census of Agriculture reports that there are 12,617 CSAs operating in the United States, up by about 1% from 12,500 in 2007. CSAs value a local approach to agriculture, and the ideal CSA reduces farmer risk through a membership share fee structure while increasing relationships with the local market. This approach of direct-to-consumer selling has been essential to the growth of the CSA movement in the United ...