March 1995
Consumers Buying "Subscriptions" to Local Farms
Farmers looking for more markets for their produce and consumers pursuing local fruits and vegetables are turning in growing numbers to "community supported agriculture," says Gail Feenstra, food systems analyst for the UC Davis-based UC Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SAREP). Through CSA programs consumers buy "subscriptions" from nearby farmers, allowing farmers to plan ahead to meet the needs of prepaid customers. "There is a tremendous interest on the part of both consumers and farmers in making that direct link," says Feenstra, who is helping to plan a major conference on community supported farming in the fall. Subscription farming began in Western Europe and Japan in the mid-1960s, first appeared in the US in the mid-1980s, and has recently been gathering momentum in California. "The number of farmers participating and consumers being served is growing exponentially," Feenstra says, noting that a grower group called CSA North America is calling for 10,000 subscription farms by the year 2000.
Media Contacts:
Lyra Halprin, (530) 752-8664, lhalprin@ucdavis.edu
