CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture
what is a CSA?
CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture
CSA is a partnership between a local farm (or in this case, group of farms) and members of the surrounding community
the farms pledge to grow food for the community and the community pledges to support the farm
It is a direct food-to-consumer relationship, connecting a community with its food source. In the late winter, members buy a share of the harvest. The farmers then use this money for seeds, greenhouse expenses, equipment, labor, etc. needed to steward the future food. Members agree to support the farmers no matter what the growing season may bring and give them a guaranteed market for the food they grow. In return, members receive a weekly share of of healthful, vibrant food, as fresh as it gets throughout the growing season! Our members also get access to bountiful u-pick gardens, bulk produce offers, and more resources to make the most of the season.
it benefits everyone involved!
CSAs support sustainable land management, a shrinking carbon footprint, and communities that can nourish themselves.
A community is formed by the members of a CSA and the farmers who produce their food.
It gives the farmers a sure market and a gauge to produce by, minimizing losses and ensuring the success of the farm.
The CSA model has many different variations…
The Full Plate Farm Collective is a unique collective model CSA
One membership supports many farms. No matter where you pick up your share or have it delivered, your food comes from all of the farms who grow for the Collective!
The Full Plate Farm Collective CSA provides 800 summer and 400 winter shares to households in the Ithaca area, feeding members up to 9 months year. Members can decide to custom pack their own share or have a boxed farmers’ choice assortment delivered weekly. When you buy a share each of our core farms receives ‘seed’ money, and we make commitments to neighboring farms to buy bulk produce throughout the season.
The Collective is cooperatively owned by Stick and Stone Farm & Remembrance Farm. But we don’t do it alone! The collective model allows us to work with and support many more great fellow-producers in the Ithaca area. We commit to buying crops early in the year, much like our members do for us. Their contributions enrich share variety and support crop security, backing each other up when yields are down.
We are stronger together
Full Plate is a full embrace of the principles of Community Supported Agriculture, supported both by members and by every farm who contributes.
By feeding a shared member community, each of our farms can focus on a specific set of crops, rather than produce all the crops themselves. And to back each other up when mother nature interferes. Our farms also share resources like equipment, storage space, and the risks that come with a changing climate and invasive pests. Our wonderful coordinator, Molly, oversees distribution logistics, membership communication and our regular farmers' meetings, allowing the farms to focus on what they do best—growing good food for you!
We are community supported farms, and we endeavor to create a farm supported community.
As a part of this you benefit from the variety and abundance the farms grow together, broader connections to our local foodshed, and from having a CSA Coordinator to support a great CSA experience.