Community Supported Agriculture - Research Proposal Example

Community supported Agriculture Since antiquity, farming has been one of the most imperativesources of income and living for millions of people around the globe. As the globe advanced, advancement was observed in this form of living, as early 1960s witnessed the commencement of community-supported agriculture in some of the European countries like Switzerland, Germany, etc. In specific, food safety and residential utilization of agricultural land were some of the factors that resulted in the beginning of such form of agriculture.

Studies have indicated that cooperative partnerships were created by individuals, and especially farmers in European parts of the globe to bear the expenses of farming, in order to acquire most out of the land. (Duram, pp. 77) In terms of definition, farming is performed and food is distributed according to a new socio-economic model, referred as community-supported agriculture. Moreover, community and its members play a vital and significant role in the development and maintenance of community-supported agriculture, which results in mutual benefits for the community from food production.

Some of the tasks involved in CSA are delivery of produced foods on a weekly basis, which is performed by different community members. Nowadays, community-based agriculture is mostly used in the United States; however, a number of similar approaches of agriculture can be seen in other parts of the globe as well. In order to understand this form of agriculture in a detailed manner, it is essential to explore the different characteristics of it. Specifically, production of high-quality fruits and vegetables is the notion and mission of community-supported agriculture, which is achieved by the support of community members.

A stronger consumer relationship can be observed in such form due to greater involvement of consumers with the producers. Every season, a supportive group of community decides to fund the budget of production, and thus, all the tasks and jobs are performed by the individuals in a collective manner. According to theories related to community-supported agriculture, a higher quality during the production of foods can be achieved by collective support and management of farming, and that is the core of such form of agriculture.

In community-based agriculture, farmers do not have bear the expenses alone, which often results in reduction of quality standards, in order to lower the costs. However, the whole budget of a season is supported by the community members, and weekly production is distribution among these members, which is the basic methodology of community-supported agriculture. In this way, an enormous time of farmers that is used for advertising and marketing the production, is saved, as CSA eliminates the risks and costs related to the marketing.

In some farms, there is a practice of subscription of a fixed amount to support the farm’s budget, which allows a family to plan their personal budget accordingly. (Henderson, pp. 23-25) Another advantage of CSA is that consumers are able to receive fresh foods, which is often not possible in usual farming approaches, as farmers have to market their production to different retailers. In this regard, community-supported agriculture has a number of significant effects on health of its consumers.

Conclusively, the paper has discussed some of the significant aspects of community-supported agriculture, which is playing a vital role in the quality production and timely distribution of farming products. It is hoped that the paper will be beneficial for students, teachers, and professionals in better understanding of the topic.Works Cited Elizabeth Henderson. Sharing the Harvest. Chelsea Green, 1999. Leslie A. Duram. Good Growing. University of Nebraska Press, 2005.