CSA Farm Revisited

Since I wrote my last post on Roxbury Farm, a CSA in which I have a half-share, things have changed radically. Just after I wrote that post, extolling the bounteous vegetable deliveries we were receiving, Hurricane Irene and other major rainstorms destroyed many of the farm's crops, with the result that our subsequent weekly vegetable deliveries were smaller and less varied.

Although tomatoes continued unabated, due to some clever planting strategies adopted by our farmers, Jean-Claude and Jody, at the beginning of the season, corn just stopped coming altogether, as did a number of other vegetables.

But what really happened is that the CSA model worked. While the members' vegetable shares were adversely affected, we did not suffer serious financial loss, and the farmers, despite horrific crop losses, survived. This is because the members had financed the season, come what may, including hurricanes. So by spreading the risk, our farmers, and lots of others like them, will get to farm for another -- and hopefully many more -- seasons.

I feel really good about that.

Bobby Jay