How Many Sweet Potatoes Can One Family Eat?

            Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a socio-economic model of agriculture and food distribution where a community of individuals pledge support to a farming operation where the growers and consumers share the risks and benefits of food production. CSAs usually consist of a system of weekly delivery or pick-up of vegetables and fruit, in a vegetable box scheme, sometimes includes dairy products and meat.

The American concept of CSAs came from the philosophies articulated in the 1920s by Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), and then actively cultivated in post-WW II Europe in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.[1] The ideas crossed the Atlantic and came to life in a new form, CSA, simultaneously but independently in 1986 at both Indian Line Farm in Massachusetts and Temple-Wilton Community Farm in New Hampshire. The two original CSA farms are still thriving today.

Since that time community supported farms have been organized throughout North America — mainly in the Northeast, the Pacific coast, the Upper-Midwest and Canada. North America now has at least 13,000 CSA farms of which 12,549 are in the US according to the US Department of Agriculture in 2007.[2] Some examples of larger and well established CSAs in the US are Angelic Organics and Roxbury Farm. The largest subscription CSA with over 13,000 families is Farm Fresh To You in Capay Valley, California.[3]

Bobbi Sheahan and her husband have four children, the oldest being 8 years old, living in Plano, Texas.[4]  Bobbi decided to join a CSA because she and one of her daughters are vegetarians, and she wanted to provide healthier meals for her family.  She searched for a source for fresh, seasonal produce when possible, preferably local and organic. She has been a member of two different CSAs. 

One, a small, local farm in the Dallas, Texas area, has a weekly drop-off in the Dallas area for $25/week year round, but some weeks they take off.  A friend referred her to this CSA.  “In the fall, there are only so many squash and sweet potatoes that a family can eat,” says Sheahan. “We were overwhelmed with squash and sweet potatoes and didn’t want anymore!”

The second CSA, Urban Acres, is a larger cooperative that serves as a middleman for local produce, but also has a retail store.  Urban Acres provides two size options, $30 every other week for a small bin, and $50 for the larger bin, plus an annual membership fee. The pick up for Urban Acres occurs at a local gym in the Dallas area and the produce is provided year round.

The most annoying problem with being a member of a CSA, according to Sheahan, is having to pick up the box at an inconvenient location.  She suspended her membership in Urban Acres because the pick up location was a 20-minute drive from her house on busy Saturday mornings with children’s activities. When they establish a pick up location nearer to her house, she will resume her membership.

The small local farm pick up is at a friend’s house, which is more convenient but still an imposition for her.  Inconsistency and lack of flexibility in the time the box is available for pick up can also present a challenge.  “The farmer may have a thousand things to do for that day and not get to town at exactly the time promised,” according to Sheahan.  “So, sometimes we have to wait around or rearrange the schedule.”  But, the box must still be picked up within a small window of time when it becomes available.

Sheahan says it does not necessarily save her money compared to the grocery store.  “Last fall, we ended up giving away a lot of potatoes because we just couldn’t eat them all.” Overall the larger CSA box does provides all of the produce her family will need over the time period without having to supplement from the grocery store.  However, the smaller farm’s box does not provide enough produce for her entire family, but they do offer eggs, meat, and milk in addition to the produce.

In spite of the challenges, she enjoys being a member of the CSAs because she enjoys the fresh produce and feels good about supporting “a local farmer who isn’t controlled by big companies like Monsanto.”  Another benefit of the CSA is that it forces her to prepare and try a new vegetable, like radish greens, that she might not otherwise try.

The best CSA that Sheahan belonged to was in California, where the farm delivered to her door with a bin she left outside.  “That was heavenly – the perfect form of CSA.”

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[1]  McFadden, S. The History of Community Supported Farms, Community Farms in the 21st Century: Poised for Another Wave of Growth? Rodale Institute. http://newfarm.rodaleinstitute.org/features/0104/csa-history/part1.shtml (February 2, 2011).

[2] National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2007 Census of Agricultural State Data, Table 44. USDA.   http://www.agcensus.usda.gov/Publications/2007/Full_Report/Volume_1,_Chapter_2_US_State_Level/st99_2_044_044.pdf (February 2, 2011).

[3] Anderson, M. “Capay farm, distributor buys West Sac warehouse.” Sacramento Business Journal.  Sacramento, CA. August 22, 2010. http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2010/08/23/story3.html (February 2, 2011).

[4] Interview with Bobbi Reilly Sheahan, February 2, 2011.