Community Supported Agriculture: A System Change

doing farming the alternative way

Imagine the following scenarios…

It is a cold November morning in the North of Germany. The sun has barely risen. In the distance, fog is covering the flat, endless fields around the farm. Slightly shivering, I get out of the car, put on an additional jacket and walk to the beetroot field close to the farm building. We are five workers this morning, and as I and my colleague approach the others already waiting by the field, our “boss” Suse hands us some working gloves. She gives us the necessary instructions and we begin our task: harvesting beetroot. Beetroot, together with all sorts of cabbage and pumpkins will make a good stock of winter vegetables. In the next couple of hours, we harvest around 1000 kilograms of beetroot, all by manual labour.

Later, we get into the utterly chaotic but cosy kitchen to have lunch together. Over the warm meal we share, Suse, our boss, proves to be a warm and friendly woman – as opposed to the first impression she gave when receiving us at the field earlier that morning (but which is somewhat typical for people from the North of Germany).

And then Winter

It is February now. We are just about to walk to the cabbage field for the harvest, when suddenly, it starts snowing. And what a magical moment this is! The tiring work of bending down with a knife to pluck the cabbage heads, putting them into vegetable boxes and carrying them to the trailer standing by the field suddenly vanishes. All we do is gaze at the beautiful, thick, white snowflakes falling like light, dancing cotton pads. We aren’t cold, or anything, as the work and the beauty surrounding us are cheering us up.

But the next lovely surprise comes already at lunchtime. Our boss has decided to make pancakes for us! Who doesn’t love this simple, but delicious meal, served with different kinds of sweet and salty toppings, like peanut butter, applesauce, jam and chocolate? But believe me when I say, after a morning of exhausting physical work in the crisp, cold air, pancakes taste ten, no, one hundred times better than usual!

Lush Spring

And then the sight of the farm when we come to work there in April and May! Lush, green bushes gracing the paths to the farm, flowers climbing the walls of the house, green pastures for the animals and aromatic herbs growing at every step by the farm buildings. The farm seems transformed into a whole new world. Spring, and then summer await us with their warm, sun filled days. Later in summer, the trees are already carrying small apples, while bushes of red and black currant are waiting to be harvested and enjoyed.

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Hard work and magical seasons

I have worked on this farm for a full year and I’ve seen, felt, tasted and understood the changes of seasons performing their magic as they went by. But more importantly, I’ve got to see and understand the work on the farm and the people living and working on it.

Working on a farm isn’t always full of pleasant experiences and romantic sights of nature. Primarily, it’s hard, physical labour. Tasks are always pressing regardless of mood and conditions. The weather dictates the daily agenda, making detailed planning impossible. It’s responsible for a rich harvest in one year and a poor one in the next year.

Being a farmer demands a lot of dedication and love for the work on a farm. It asks for daily commitment and persistence. Oftentimes, it means little time for vacations. Obviously, there is always more work to be done, especially when there are animals on the farm. You can’t leave animals without food or care even for a single day, weekend or not!

What is Community Supported Agriculture?

But the Kastanienhof (Chestnut Farm in English) is special in one way. It is organized as a so-called community supported agriculture (CSA), in addition to being an organic farm. This means that the farm offers a certain number of “harvest shares” to the public. By engaging in this network, one becomes a member for the upcoming season, paying a seasonal membership. In return, you receive a weekly basket of fresh vegetables. The season usually lasts from April to March of the following year (in the Northern Hemisphere).

By producing food only for its members and receiving a fixed amount of money each month, the farmer can better plan his or her seasonal expenditures and vegetable growing scheme. This means that the risk is shared between the farmer and his members, no matter the weather and seasonal yield.

The benefit for the consumers is that they get to know their farmer and where their food comes from very well, and a sense of community arises between members of this network. Especially since there are many occasions on which members can come and visit or work on the farm, just as I did many times. In addition, there are two annual gatherings on which farm news are discussed, the yearly budget is presented, proposals can be made and even “vegetable-preferences” can be uttered!

For the farmers, this also means they can take some proper vacation with their family. As opposed to many regular farms, CSA farms are often able to employ work-force on the farm for the full year, thanks to their stable revenues. On other farms, it is very common to employ only seasonal labour.

A long tradition

Community supported agriculture can be found in more or less the same shape all across the world. Some grow only vegetables, some collaborate with other farms and produce everything from bread, fruits & vegetables, to cheese and meat. Probably the earliest forms emerged already in the 1980s in Japan! There are definitely many advantages to this system both for the consumer and the producer.

Personally, I loved being part of this community. It was an incredibly interesting experience, but I had to quit after a year. The main reason were my long absences from town throughout the year, since my family lives in another country. But as soon as I settle in a town with a Community shared agriculture nearby, I’m up to join it again! (Or start my own if there isn’t any there yet – who knows…)

Admittedly, the taste of the fresh, seasonal vegetables from the Chestnut Farm cannot possibly be topped… And not having to think about what to buy and cook for the week actually was very pleasant for me. I never missed the tomatoes in winter or cabbage in summer. Instead, I was already very much looking forward to the fresh carrots coming up in autumn after a long summer break, or the first lettuce of the year! And the incredible variety of vegetables on the farm… I learned about types of vegetables which I didn’t even know existed before!

Community Supported Agriculture: The System Change We Need?

Could community supported agriculture be the farming model of the future? It certainly is a step in the right direction, as it values agriculture and food very highly. It connects farmers and consumers as no other form of agriculture does.

From the environmental perspective, local production and short ways of transportation are an important argument for community supported agriculture. In addition, it provides people with seasonal, locally produced organic food.

With so many farmers barely being able to live from the prices they are paid for their products, this might just be the system change we so desperately need.

In the end, it will be the individual financial and practical possibilities, and the willingness of the consumers, deciding over its feasibility.

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Are you curious to try out community supported agriculture yourself? Have a look at these sites to find a CSA near to you:

UK: https://communitysupportedagriculture.org.uk/

USA: https://www.localharvest.org/csa/

Germany: https://www.solidarische-landwirtschaft.org/startseite/

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Is there a CSA-farm in you area? Have you joined one yet? Do you think it could be the farming model of the future? Let me know in the comments below!