Unfortunately due to obligations at work I was not able to make it to this week’s field trip. However, after reading a few of my fellow students’ posts I understand that Fifer’s Orchards is a CSA. This peaks my interest as I have a somewhat mixed idea of what exactly a CSA is. In this case the Fifer family business sends out monthly/weekly boxes full of fruit and other produce grown by in the orchard and in turn the community pays for this and the orchard is supported for the most part. In other scenarios a CSA is simply a community garden maintained by the community in areas where fresh produce is a scarcity and not within economical means. Thirdly in rural areas (more specifically Madison County, VA) the community owns a plot of arable land and a farmer is brought in to work that land for the community.
In my opinion, no matter what form its in, a CSA is a good thing. Both the community and the farmer is benefiting almost regardless. In all three scenarios the community is receiving fresh produce that is guaranteed to reach their table when previously it may not have been. In the first and last CSA style the farmer is guaranteed both a market and land to work. In the second option people who may have never known the origin of food or the importance of agriculture are exposed to this lesson.