Msg # 325 Date: 15 May 93 14:55:00 From: Scott Parks To: All Subj: Sust. Ag Sources ____________________________________________________________________________ AREA:SUST_AG MSGID: 1:343/70 2bf50497 From: Tom Gray Subject: Sustainable Agriculture Resources [from _Co-op America Quarterly, Spring 1993] CO-OP AMERICA'S COMMUNITY ACTION GUIDE You want to live in a sustainable community. But how do you get there? You may want to start small, with an existing organization or group. Or you may want to start your own community project based on one or two of the precepts of sustainability. Supporting local agriculture can be achieved through a community garden, for example. You don't need to reinvent the wheel. Exciting new models have sprung up around the U.S. in the past few years. People and organizations can give you the technical assistance you need to set your community down the path toward sustainability. ----------- Local Agriculture When you sit down to eat a meal, the food on your plate has traveled an average of 1,300 miles to reach your table. Supporting local agriculture improves economic self-reliance as well as providing healthier food. Community supported agriculture (CSA) offers people a unique way to reconnect with their food and the land through a direct relationship with a farmer and a local farm. Through CSAs, a community of citizens purchases shares in a farm. A share entitled the shareholder to a set amount of organically grown produce during the growing season. By paying up front, the shareholders also share the financial risk of farming. The guaranteed income means the farmer can focus on growing high quality food, rather than on what crops will get the best price. This model was "born" 30 years ago in Europe and Japan. The first community farming operations in the U.S. were formed in 1986 in the populous Northeast. Today more than 300 CSAs are working in the U.S. The average CSA has 50-60 shareholders for one farm. CSAs vary in function: some are initiated by a farmer, others by citizens who hire a farmer to run a farm. In some cases farmers deliver produce to neighborhood drop sites. In other cases, shareholders collect the produce at the farm. On a smaller scale are community gardens. Community gardens are transforming urban vacant lots, strewn with garbage, into a center of community. Neighborhood gardens serve as a catalyst for community development, beautify local areas, reduce food costs, and provide valuable recreational and therapeutic benefits. Community compost projects can be coupled with community gardens. For more information, contact: Appropriate Technical Transfer for Rural Areas (800) 346-9140 Offers free information packets on CSAs. Bio-Dynamic Farming and Gardening Association PO Box 550 Kimberton, PA 19442 (215) 935-7797 A nonprofit organizaton promoting the principles of biodynamic agriculture. National clearinghouse for CSA information. Publishes _Farms of Tomorrow: Community Supported Farms; Farm Supported Communities_ by Trauger M. Groh and Steven S. H. McFadden. 169pp. (1990) $12.50 plus $2.50 s/h. Community Supported Agriculture of North America c/o Robyn Van En Route 3, Box 85 Great Barrington, MA 01230 Handbook on how to start a CSA by the initiator of the first CSA in the U.S. The Harvest Times PO Box 1399 Kingston, NY 12401 (914) 688-5030 Contact: Melody Newcombe Quarterly national newsletter on CSA movement edited by a CSA farmer. Reports on and provides useful tips on starting and running CSAs. Publisher's database can connect you to a CSA in your area. $10/year. American Community Gardening Association 325 Walnut Street Philadelphia, PA 19106 (215) 625-8280 A national network of community gardening volunteers. Provides free "how to" information. Publishes _The Community Gardening Review_ magazine. $25/year. _Backyard Composting: Your Complete Guide to Recycling Yard Clippings_ John Roulac Harmonious Press (800) 345-0096 96pp. (1992) $6.95 plus $2.75 s/h Community Compost Education Program - Seattle Tilth 4649 Sunnyside Avenue, N. Seattle, WA 98103 (206) 633-0224 Public information packet, a master composter training packet, plans and instructions for building a compost bin and a program planning packet. $5. Or contact your County Extension Service. _Common Harvest: An Alternative Food and Agriculture Directory_ Food Action Network 5324 Park Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55417 (612) 822-7607 Directory offers a host of practical projects to create a closer connection to the land as the source of our food. Provides models for alternative gardening, food preservation, and dietary changes. Chapters on CSAs, composting, land trusts and more. 150pp. (1992) $9 plus $1.50 s/h. -------------- Co-op America Quarterly is free with an Individual Membership in Co-op America ($20/year) or Business Membership ($50/year). Co-op America is a member-controlled and worker-managed nonprofit organization promoting a sustainable economy and educating consumers and businesses on how to align buying and investing habits with values of peace, cooperation, and environmental protection. Co-op America 1850 M Street, NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20036 phone (800) 424-2667 fax (202) 872-5202 --- GEcho 1.00+ * Origin: Helix - Intentional Future - Seattle - (206)783-6368 (1:343/70) SEEN-BY: 352/410 PATH: 343/70 300 138/112 352/11 409 410