Summer is fast approaching in the Northern Hemisphere which means that it’s the season for fresh produce. But, what if, rather than dealing with the multi-national corporations that ship food around the world before it hits the shelves or with the radlib fetishization of farmers’ markets, you wanted to get fresh local produce while simultaneously building the infrastructure for radical organizing? Well have I got the project for you: A CSA!

What is a CSA?

CSA stands for Community Supported/Shared/Sustained Agriculture and it's pretty much a Buyers Co-op for food. Members of a CSA pool together money to buy large amounts of locally grown produce which is then sorted into shares for everyone who pitched in. While some CSAs operate under an NGO-like service model, it’s also possible (and much more based) to take a more communal approach with members getting a say in how the CSA is run and sharing the responsibility of essential tasks. At a smaller scale, CSAs will likely have to buy their produce at auction, but if the pool gets large enough, they can provide funds directly to farmers at the beginning of the growing season and, in exchange for supporting the farmers’ labor, they receive produce regularly throughout the season. However, even at a small scale, CSAs provide many benefits to their members.

What are the Benefits of a CSA?

Subverts Much of the Capitalist Supply Chain:

The supply chain that brings food to grocery stores is a long and wasteful process. Shipping, storing, and preserving mass quantities of produce is damaging to the environment, leads to a lower quality product by the time it hits your plate, and puts money in the pocket of the bourgeoisie. Conversely, buying locally grown produce reduces emissions, gives you a better quality and quantity of product, and keeps exploitative middlemen from profiting off of your purchase.

Forges Connections Between Members:

It turns out that communally meeting each other’s material needs can really bring a group of people together. On top of this, having social events for the members can build the kinds of connections needed for other organizing projects (so I strongly recommend pushing for it to explicitly be a working-class organization if (read: when) that’s a debate that comes up).

Gives Knowledge and Experience Concerning Local Food Production

It’s about to be really fucking necessary to have a base of leftists that are knowledgeable about how food production works. All of that knowledge is out there and helping to operate a CSA will put you and your comrades in contact with the people who have it.

How do I get started?

As with any organizing project it all starts with conversations. While you’re just getting your feet under you, it’ll be best to have a group that is small and like-minded enough that it’s easy (well, at least easier) to come to consensus on decisions that impact the ultimate direction of the organization but still has enough people to tackle the work that is needed in the initial stages. However, there’s no real formula for success on striking the perfect balance at the outset and the composition of the group will almost certainly be in flux early on. In your first buying season, your group should seek to answer the following questions:

• How does your organization make decisions? How can you ensure that the process is as democratic as possible?
• How can you buy large quantities of produce in the area (e.g. produce auctions, buying directly from farmers, etc.)?
• How far does your money go when buying as a CSA? (Hint: It’ll go much farther than it does at the supermarket)
• What kinds of produce can you expect to be grown in the area?
• What is the best buying season? (Hint: Before and after the optimal buying season, supply will be too low and demand will be too high to get much at auction)
• What tasks are essential to each buy (e.g. buying, sorting, etc.)? How are these tasks done? Who does them?
• What other organizations are addressing food insecurity in your area? How are they dealing with the issue? What gaps can your organization help fill?
• Are there other organizations that you would like to partner with? (e.g. helping provide produce for a group that gives free meals to the community)
• Are there groups or individuals you would not like to partner with? (cough cough landlords and business owners cough cough)

Before your launch/first expansion, your group should seek to answer these questions:

• What does it mean to be a member? (e.g. requirements, perks)
• How will money be stored? How will it be spent?
• How will you train new members on essential tasks?
• Should there be benefits to performing essential tasks? (e.g. free shares, reimbursement for gas, etc.)

Before every buying season, your group should seek to answer these questions:

• How often will you buy? During what time period?
• Where will you buy? Where will you sort? How will the shares be distributed?
• How much does a share cost?
• How many people will you bring in? Who? (Hint: You should once again think about group cohesion and what your structures can accommodate)

You should always seek to find answers to these questions:

• How can you make the group more inclusive?
• How can you get members more involved in the project?
• How can you deepen the connection between members? (Hint: Creating space for people to talk about their problems and finding ways to solve them tends to do the trick)
• How can you connect the organization with other organizations?
• How can you ensure longevity for the project, even if there’s turnover with the membership?

Of course, these won’t be the only questions your organization will ever have to answer (especially as the organization grows in scale), but they’ll give you a good head start if you choose to embark on a project like this. If you’re looking for a project to work on this summer, I highly recommend laying some of the groundwork for a CSA!