The farm and the garden: community supported agriculture programs and public horticulture institutions
Date
2010
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Community supported agriculture, or CSA, is one of several newlyemerging models of sustainable agriculture, which attempts to provide an alternative to conventional large-scale agricultural practice by linking independent, small-scale farmers to individual consumers. In recent years, CSA has become a topic of interest within the public horticulture community, and many public gardens have considered integrating CSA-related programming within operations. The purpose of this research was to assess the extent to which public horticulture institutions have engaged with community supported agriculture, to identify the institutional benefits and challenges presented by such programming, and to develop recommendations for public horticulture institutions wishing to implement CSA projects. This study utilized a concurrent embedded mixed-methods design for data collection, and included three electronic questionnaires distributed to public horticulture institutions, four case studies of institutions currently implementing CSA programs, and additional interviews with topic experts in the field of sustainable agriculture. Survey data revealed that over 25% of respondent institutions have considered CSA implementation; however, fewer than 11% of institutions have actually implemented such programming. Analysis of survey, case study, and expert interview data indicated that relevance to institutional mission, potential for community engagement, availability of staff resources, and availability of financial resources were major factors taken into account by institutions considering CSA implementation. Case study research indicated that CSA implementation resulted in perceived benefits for parent institutions, farm shareholders, and society at large. Such benefits included support of institutional mission, creation of a sense of community, and provision of educational opportunities related to agricultural and environmental sustainability. Common challenges encountered over the course of CSA program implementation included financial difficulties, perceived lack of program support on the part of parent institutions, and logistical challenges. Implementation recommendations address the areas of strategic and financial planning, missionrelatedness, institutional leadership and support, educational goals, and community support.