Farm Profitability

CSAs(Community Supported Agriculture) have been around for 20 years,and remains a popular way for consumers to cut out the middle man and buy seasonally local directly from a farmer.

Here’s how CSAs works:  a farmer offers a specific number of “shares” to the public and consumers interested in participating in the CSA purchase a share, which gains them membership.  In return, the consumer receives a box of seasonal produce each week throughout the entire farming season. Generally, the CSAs “share” consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included or substituted.   Some farmers include the option for members to buy “shares” of bread, meat, eggs, cheese, fruit or other farm products along with their veggies.  Sometimes, several farmers will align together (complete with a mutual CSA drop off point) to offer their various products together, offering tremendous variety to their members.     In some parts of the country, non-farming third parties are setting up CSA-like businesses, where they act as middle men and sell boxes of local (and sometimes non-local) food for their members.

There are many benefits to a CSA to both farmer and consumer.

Farmers spend more time marketing the food earlier n the year before their long 16 hours workdays in the field begins.  Additionally, farmers receive payment early in the season, greatly improving cash flow.  As well, farmers have a chance to get to personally know the people who eat the food that they grow.

Consumers benefit as well – they get to eat fresh food, complete with all of the flavors and vitamin benefits that only farm-grown produce can harvest.  It’s also an opportunity for consumers to become exposed to newer vegetables.    Consumers can visit the farm at least once per season, developing a direct relationship with the farmer who is helping to sustain them and their families.

Families by the tens of thousands have joined CSAs,  Though the government doesn’t track CSAs, LocalHarvest has a comprehensive directory of CSA farms.  According to their count, there are over 2,500.  To give you an idea of their progression, 557 CSAs signed up with LocalHarvest in 2008, and by the first two months of 2009, an additional 300 CSAs joined.

There are ways for farmers to market their CSAs, making them even more appealing to consumers.  One variation for farmers is to offer up a mix-and-match box.  Instead of a standard box of veggies for members each week, the members themselves load up their own boxes from an array of vegetables or fruits laid out by the farmer.