Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Sharing the harvest
Community Supported Agriculture programs help farmers establish personal connections with customers.
Michael Burton (standing) and intern Shannon Houghton harvest carrots at Moon Indigo Farm in Check.
George Hall of Idyllwood Farm in Pilot holds some of the fresh corn he grew.
SummerRain Ursomarso (from left), Dennis Dove and Tenley Weaver work in the fields at Full Circle Organic Farm in Floyd.
Food writer Lindsey Nair
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The frigid days and icy nights of January do not typically conjure up images of fresh, local produce.
But you can bet farmers are already thinking about this year's crops, and some eager consumers are taking steps to ensure they get their share of the bounty.
In Southwest Virginia, sign-ups have already begun for Community Supported Agriculture programs. While relatively obscure in America 10 years ago, CSAs have lately exploded in popularity, along with the local food movement as a whole.
"We haven't marketed [the CSA program] in three or four years," said Polly Hieser of Seven Springs Farm in Floyd County. "We used to have to beat the bushes to get people. Now we have to send checks back."
Community Supported Agriculture programs allow customers to pay farmers a flat fee up front for a "share" of the harvest. The consumer then shows up at a designated drop spot once a week throughout the growing season to pick up a box or bag of food.
In these parts, it seems that no two farmers use the same CSA model.
For example, some farms require volunteer work as part of the share cost; others do not. Some farms sell half shares and full shares while others offer only one size. Some occasionally include items such as eggs, bread, honey or even freshly cut flowers, while others stick to produce.
Generally speaking, however, there are many benefits to farmers and consumers when it comes to CSA programs, as well as a few pitfalls.
Let's take a more detailed look.
The upside
It's no secret that farming is a challenging way to make a living. Many farmers must take out bank loans to pay for seed, labor and other expenses associated with growing crops, then pay them back after harvest.
A CSA program allows customers to pay farmers in advance, which provides invaluable security.
"At the farmers market, you could get a rainy day and come home with a lot of product," said Michael Burton of Moon Indigo Farm in Check. "Here, you have a guaranteed market at a guaranteed price."
Finding the time to market product is one of the biggest hurdles for farmers, and CSAs can be marketed during the offseason, so that's another advantage for them.
Finally, the farmers I interviewed said they love establishing personal connections with customers. While selling at farmers markets is certainly more personal than some alternatives, the CSA business model provides an even closer relationship.
Lots of CSA customers, even those who don't do volunteer work, visit the farm to see where their food is grown.
"It is helping to create the connection that is lost in accessing our produce at Walmart," said Tenley Weaver of Full Circle Organic Farm in Floyd County.
Weaver also manages Good Food-Good People, a consortium of about 30 farmers headquartered in Floyd.
For customers, the personal connection is also a plus, particularly for those who want to know how their food is being grown. Most Southwest Virginia farms participating in CSAs are either certified organic, meaning they've done the government paperwork, or at least follow organic-growing principles.
Another advantage for customers is knowing their produce is always fresh. They also frequently get to experiment with vegetable and fruit varieties that are hard to find in typical grocery stores.
Weaver, for example, includes one "weird" item in her CSA bags each week and accompanies the bags with cooking suggestions and recipes. She then asks for feedback from customers.
Sometimes the adventurous item is a big hit (such as multicolored carrots) and sometimes it isn't.
"Red-ribbed dandelion greens didn't go over so well," she said with a chuckle.
The downside
Because joining a CSA program is like buying months of groceries in advance, the one-time cost might be too steep for some families.
A share suitable for a family of two or three generally costs several hundred dollars, with larger shares topping $1,000 in some programs.
The bags are usually lighter in the spring because fewer fruits and vegetables are in season in Virginia at that time, but later in the year they are heavier.
I would advise that customers do a little math to determine how much the share will cost them per week. They should also think about how much produce their family is likely to eat. Some may find that in the long run, joining a CSA is cheaper than buying produce at the store.
Harvests are only as generous as Mother Nature allows, and sometimes bad weather may affect the availability of certain goods -- in 2007, for instance, most stone fruit crops were a total failure after a late spring freeze.
Experienced CSA farmers know to put precautionary measures in place to ensure that customers get their money's worth, but you might want to ask for details before signing up.
I have found that in Southwest Virginia, most CSAs are supplied by a group of farms rather than a solitary farm. That's a good thing, because if one grower has a tomato crop failure, the next farm over can hopefully pick up the slack in the CSA baskets.
There's also a lot of overlap in CSA circles, meaning one farm might grow produce for several CSA programs.
Rest assured that because shareholders have paid upfront, many farmers tend to give those CSA baskets priority over the market table or a restaurant client.
"We repay their commitment with our commitment," Weaver said.
What's right for you?
The only way to determine whether a CSA program is a good fit for your family is to do some investigating.
I've tried to make that step a little easier by putting together a preliminary guide to CSA programs in this corner of the state. Because not all farmers have advertised their programs, particularly those who run very small CSAs, this is probably not a complete list.
Keep in mind that most CSAs fill up quickly, so now is the time to do your homework and make a decision. As Hieser said, demand is beginning to outpace supply, but each year finds new farmers who want to start a CSA.
