Paper short abstract:

I would like to give an overview of the dynamic concept of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in Europe. This enables us to understand various approaches, different characteristics and diffusion of CSA.

Paper long abstract:

In CSA, consumers and producers form a solidarity-based partnership in which risks and benefits of food production are shared. In a typical CSA scheme, all partners share the cost of production before the farming season and receive their share of fresh, regional produce at the time of harvest. By doing this, they liberate the food supply chain of market forces. As such, CSA is not only an agricultural approach but an example of an economic concept based on short cycles, personal trust, transparency and solidarity alternative which offers an alternative to dominant economic paradigms.

The high demand for such schemes is proven by the extremely dynamic development of CSA in many European countries. In Germany, their number has doubled in the last 3 years and is expected to double again in the coming year. In France, where the first CSA was founded in 2001, an estimated 2000-3000 CSAs are operating at present. Similar growth rates can be observed in various other European countries.

Being a new movement that is characterized by a great diversity of organizational and legal forms an overview of the CSA movement in Europe is much needed. Citizens, policy makers and activists alike can benefit from insights in this powerful emerging movement.