Research & reports

Linda Naeve, Catherine Strohbehn · Iowa State University Digital Repository (Iowa State University) · United States

As more consumers use Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farms for their fresh produce, this publication discusses how to keep food safe before, during, and after delivery, from harvest through storage.

James E. Allen, Jairus Rossi, Timothy A. Woods, Alison F. Davis · International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability · United States

A survey of 151 shareholders across three midsized Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) operations near Lexington, Kentucky (International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability, 2016), addressed a gap in prior research that had relied mostly on small samples (n < 25). Using 20 paired before/after questions, paired two-sided t-tests, and regression of paired differences on socioeconomic factors, self-reported health, and years of CSA enrollment, the study found that food lifestyle behaviors and health outcomes changed after CSA participation, with respondents who reported "poor health" before enrollment showing the most change overall. The authors describe these results as an initial analysis of CSA's impact on shareholder food lifestyle behaviors and health outcomes.

Timothy A. Woods, Debra Tropp, Woods, Timothy A., Tropp, Debra · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · USA

This paper explores the strategic positioning of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in a changing food market, where competition for the local food dollar has expanded. Drawing on observations from a survey of CSA managers, it documents specific trends in adaptations to the CSA business model. CSA managers generally perceive other CSAs and farm markets as their closest competition.

Margaret Ellen Kubek · UWM Digital Commons (University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee) · United States (Wisconsin)

This thesis explored the food provisioning strategies of year-round and seasonal residents of Phelps, WI. Ethnographic data gathered in the summer and fall of 2011 found that Phelps, WI, is classified as food insecure, leading residents to modify routines for lengthy drives to purchase food, while year-round residents utilized self-provisioning strategies. Newly initiated farmers' market and community supported agriculture projects increased overall food availability, but these efforts were mostly utilized by seasonal residents, with year-round residents finding these options unaffordable and inconveniently scheduled.

Yuki Kato · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States (New Orleans)

This case study, based on ethnographic observation and interviews, examined an alternative food market in a New Orleans neighborhood to understand different views of "community." The study identified four distinct groups—community gardeners, locavores, hipsters, and local residents—each with different expectations for the organization. Findings did not demonstrate a unified community emerging around this organization, with no single group staking a claim on it.

Yves T. Ilunga, Sayed Saghaian · 2015 Annual Meeting, January 31-February 3, 2015, Atlanta, Georgia · United States

This study used a linear regression econometrics model with USDA county-level data to measure the economic impact of access to healthy food on obesity in the U.S. Results showed that many factors beyond access to healthy food explain variations in obesity rates. Increased household income and more full-service restaurants both had a negative impact on obesity rates, and age played a significant role, with people over 65 likely eating healthier than those under 18.

Ryan E. Galt, Katharine A. Bradley, Libby Christensen, Julia Van Soelen Kim, Ramiro Lobo · Sociologia Ruralis · United States (California)

A study of 111 CSA farms in California examined the effects of competition within alternative food networks. Analysis showed that perceived competition is negatively correlated with CSA farms' profitability, farmer satisfaction, various indicators of CSA's social embeddedness, and two community food security strategies. Competition was found to undermine some commonly held CSA values, specifically fair farmer compensation and strong member-farmer relationships.

Jennifer Haney, Michael A. J. Ferguson, Elyzabeth W. Engle, Kathleen M. Wood, Kyle Olcott, A. E. Luloff, James Finley · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States (Pennsylvania)

This study aimed to define "community" in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) by interviewing 97 members and four operators from four CSA farms in central Pennsylvania. Respondents were highly satisfied with CSA products and services, but satisfaction scores varied significantly across farms. These differences indicated that member-defined attributes of a CSA community varied, with farm management practices and personal interactions affecting members' perceptions of community.

Eleni Papaoikonomou, Matías Ginieis · Revista Internacional de Organizaciones · United States (New York City)

This study conducts an empirical comparison between two local food systems: Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in Manhattan, New York, and Responsible Consumption Cooperatives in Catalonia, Spain. Using a qualitative methodology, the research identifies and explores the practices and narratives established between producers and consumers, which are also defined by the orientation and raison d’être of the local system. The study aims to empirically verify romanticized discourses about local food systems.

Kynda R. Curtis, K. Eileen Allen, Ruby A. Ward, Curtis, Kynda R., Allen, Karin, Ward, Ruby A. · Journal of food distribution research · United States (Utah)

This study examined the impacts of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program participation on consumer attitudes and behaviors related to food consumption and preparation among CSA members in Utah. Data were collected through pre, post, and monthly surveys, food purchase receipts, and CSA basket contents. Results showed shifts in participant dietary intake and food preparation attitudes and behaviors, including increased fresh produce consumption, decreased grain intake, and fewer meals consumed away from home. Participants also became more interested in cooking and canning/preserving, with increased availability of Vitamin C, Vitamin B, and folic acid.

Georgeanne M. Artz, Linda Naeve, Artz, Georgeanne M., Naeve, Linda · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · United States (Iowa)

A study in Iowa indicated that small-scale farmers considering scaling up production face challenges balancing increased labor costs with the need for specialized machinery. The study collaborated with five groups of farmers who shared different pieces of machinery, developing sharing agreements. While the article provides an overview of the benefits and challenges of machinery sharing, the abstract does not state specific findings that machinery sharing resolved economic viability issues.

Mayhah Suri, Paul Goeringer · University Libraries (University of Maryland) · United States (Maryland)

This report highlights the results of a survey conducted in summer 2014 by the Maryland Department of Agriculture on contract use and risk management tools by Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) operators in Maryland. It also details workshops and materials developed by the Department of Agricultural and Resource and the Ag Law Education Initiative in winter 2015. Additionally, the report mentions state programs that verify CSA operators in California.

Connie Everson · Studies in the Education of Adults · United States

This study examined informal learning among members and farmers in community-supported agriculture (CSA) in the United States. CSA began as a loosely formalized, vaguely socialistic agreement between consumers and farmers, but as it became more institutionalized, education came to hold a near-equal footing alongside the nutritional offerings. The author's research found that goodwill generated by the farmers translated into a shared sense of community, in which information and knowledge were freely shared between CSA members and their farmer. Informal learning was found to be an intricate part of participation in the CSA experience: while individuals joining a CSA did not anticipate or expect a learning experience, the season-long process was strongly conducive to many forms of informal learning.

Christopher Wharton, Renée Shaw Hughner, Lexi MacMillan, Claudia Dumitrescu · Ecology of Food and Nutrition · United States

A US study conducted a series of focus groups to identify the motives for joining community supported agriculture (CSA) programs, the experiences of CSA membership, and diet-related outcomes. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a framework to categorize findings, the data suggested that CSA membership could serve as a strategy for promoting healthful diets and behaviors. Participant numbers and the specific location are not stated in the abstract.

Paul Goeringer, Ashley Newhall, Sarah Everhart · University Libraries (University of Maryland) · United States

A sample Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) contract, developed by the University of Maryland's Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics and the Agriculture Law Education Initiative, provides a template to help CSA operators draft their own written contracts; it is a practical legal document rather than a research paper.

Paul Goeringer, Ashley Newhall, Sarah Everhart, Wele Elangwe · University Libraries (University of Maryland) · United States

This guide from the University of Maryland describes what a typical Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) arrangement involves — members pledging to help cover a farm's anticipated production costs in exchange for a share of crops over a specified period, usually summer through early fall — and outlines what farm owners and members should include in a CSA membership agreement.

Duncan Hilchey · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States

A study in the late 1990s investigated small-scale grower cooperatives in the northeastern United States, which had annual sales of US$5 million or less. It found many barriers to growth, including managers' difficulties in balancing diverse member interests, meeting buyer standards, and operating in a high-cost, low-price business. The Northeast Federation of Family-Farm Cooperatives (NEFFCO), a proposed support group, did not last beyond its grant period, indicating challenges in sustaining such initiatives.

Melea Press, Eric J. Arnould · Journal of Marketing Management · United States

This paper examines how alternative marketing organizations communicate transparency amidst generalized risk and skepticism, using Community Supported Agriculture programs across the United States as context. It contrasts the traditional numeric approach to transparency, involving auditing and third-party certifications, with an alternative narrative transparency approach that emphasizes stakeholder dialogue and invites stakeholders to act as auditors. The article illustrates how alternative marketing organizations employ rhetorical tactics such as persona, allegory, consumer sovereignty, and enlightenment to communicate transparency to their stakeholders.

Sudha Thapaliya, Matthew G. Interis, Alba J. Collart, Lurleen M. Walters, Kimberly L. Morgan, Thapaliya, Sudha, Interis, Matthew G., Collart, Alba J., Walters, Lurleen, Morgan, Kimberly L. · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · United States

This study investigated health motivations for purchasing local foods among consumers in the Southeastern United States. It analyzed the effects of specific health variables, focusing on family illness incidences of six diseases (heart disease, diabetes, obesity, back/joint pain, Alzheimer/dementia, and cancer), on local food buying behavior. Using a binary probit model, findings indicated that a family history of cancer and obesity were statistically significant factors in purchasing local foods. Other important factors included a higher physical activity level, following a special diet, and the availability of farmers' markets.

Erin Silva, Fengxia Dong, Paul D. Mitchell, John Hendrickson · Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems · United States (Wisconsin)

A survey of Wisconsin-certified organic vegetable farmers investigated the relationships between farm characteristics, marketing strategies, and farmers' perceptions of profitability and quality of life. The data indicated that farmers selling into farmers' markets and through community-supported agriculture (CSA) were more likely to be dissatisfied with their profitability. Conversely, farmers selling into wholesale markets and restaurants/institutions were significantly more likely to be dissatisfied with their quality of life.

Jeanne Simonelli, Stephanie Paladino · Culture Agriculture Food and Environment · United States

This issue focuses on the movement to reintegrate food production into the civic, moral, and economic life of communities. Specifically, it highlights a qualitative study on the perceived benefits of community gardening in Baltimore, Maryland. The study explores the benefits to individuals, neighborhoods, and the city, suggesting these can be used as urban planning tools for developing healthy urban environments.

Sarah Legg · Figshare · United States (Wyoming)

ACRES Student Farm, a University of Wyoming organization, has grown significantly over six years, providing local produce, CSA shares, composting, and educational opportunities. However, the farm suffers from continuous losses in efficiency and acquired knowledge due to the transient nature of its student management and workforce, leading to unsustainable internal functioning. This project aims to develop a management plan and handbook to address these issues and improve the farm's operational efficiency.

Cristina Connolly, H. Allen Klaiber · American Journal of Agricultural Economics · United States

This study used a hedonic model with firm-level prices and CSA characteristics from 453 CSA farms in Michigan, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania during the summer 2012 growing season to value CSA attributes. Results showed a price premium of approximately 7% for USDA organic certification, though this varied by state, but no premium for competing certified naturally grown programs. CSA farms exhibited little market power and appeared to act competitively.

Alexandra Jeanne Hiniker · Digital Commons - Hamline (Hamline University) · United States

This study surveyed Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farms in Minnesota, asking farm owners and operators about demographics, farm specifics, and marketing practices. Results indicate that Minnesota's CSA community is robust and diverse in its offerings. It was found that face-to-face communication is preferred above all else to support farm activities.

Travis P. Marcotte · Journal of Agricultural & Food Information · United States

An article based on a speech by Travis Marcotte, Executive Director of the Intervale Center in Vermont, USA, recounts the Center's innovation and leadership over more than 25 years, spanning agricultural land reclamation, Community Supported Agriculture, riparian restoration, and large-scale composting through to farm incubation, food hubs, and community celebrations of local food. It also describes the Center's response to climate change, environmental healing, and efforts to connect people with good food and the benefits of a healthier food system.