Community Supported Agriculture

Community-supported agriculture (CSA) is a model of food production and distribution that directly connects farmers and eaters.

Being part of CSA is a way for eaters to share with the farmer the costs and risks of farming as well as the bounty. People buy shares in a farm’s projected harvest in advance and for a set period (a season, or a year, for example) and receive regular deliveries.

CSAs vary in their structure and payment terms, but the principle is that farms supply their produce directly to their members through a subscription model — a commitment from the eater is made to accept the produce they are given and to share the risk of the harvest with the farmer.

AFSA is a proud member of Urgenci: The International Network for Community-Supported Agriculture

Principles of Teikei

CSA was started in the 1970s in Japan by organic vegetable farmers and is now widespread and growing around the world. It is based on the Principles of Teikei (1978).

Principle of mutual assistance

Principle of accepting the produce

Principle of mutual concession in the price decision

Principle of deepening friendly relationships

Principle of self-distribution

Principle of democratic management

Principle of learning among each group

Principle of maintaining the appropriate group scale

Principle of steady development

Australia has a growing CSA movement as small-scale farmers move to this solidarity economy for financial security, risk sharing, and deeper connection with the people who eat their produce.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • I am not a farmer, but I aggregate multiple farmers’ produce and distribute boxes to a community of eaters each week. Am I a CSA?

No. A CSA is a direct relationship between farmers and eaters. There are many excellent box schemes in Australia (such as the pioneers and food sovereignty activists who do such good work at Food Connect), and these are all part of the broader food sovereignty movement, but they are not CSA.

  • I am a farmer who sells directly to a regular group of customers who pay weekly. Am I a CSA?

It depends. If you have a commitment from your community to share the risk of your harvest with you – that is, they would still pay if your tomatoes were wiped out by blight or your entire crop by hail — then yes, that is fundamentally CSA. If your customers would not pay if your crop failed under the examples above, then it is not a CSA, which has at its essence the sharing of risks and benefits.

Read articles about Community Supported Agriculture

  • AFSA urges the Federal Government to change its definition of primary producers, to include smallholders seeking critical disaster recovery funding

      8 April 2022 The Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance (AFSA) ...

    READ MORE

  • AFSA is expanding: Join our National Committee or sub-committees and working groups

    Join our team: AFSA National Committee We are seeking nominations ...

    READ MORE

  • Facing our Food Head On

    Katherine Scott discovered Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) after exploring her ...

    READ MORE

  • A Licence to Sell Lettuce? ASFA Submission to FSANZ Proposal

      For three years FSANZ has been working on a ...

    READ MORE

  • Solidarity and Corporate Capture of the UN Food Systems Summit

    A panel of food systems advocates, including Costa Georgiadis (Gardening ...

    READ MORE

  • AFSA Solidarity Economies Session #2 – Collaborative Economies

      WATCH: AFSA Solidarity Economies Session #2 - Collaborative Economies ...

    READ MORE