Urban Farm DB
Research catalogue
Database research record2025·United States (upstate New York)

The Contradictions of Pursuing Holistic Sustainability on a CSA Farm

Caitlin Morgan

Gastronomica The Journal of Food and Culture

Urban Farm DB summary

This study is a case study of Essex Farm, a full-diet Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) operation in upstate New York. The farm struggled to balance its ecological and social values with the economic imperatives and pressures of surviving in a competitive, capitalist market. Consequently, the farm's social fabric, critical to its initial success, began to fray over time.