Waiheke looking to get its first CSA underway

If the idea of chopped spinach from Holland on the shelves of the Waiheke Supermarket sets off your absurdity alarm bells, you will be happy to know that the level of interest in locally produced vegetables and fruits has been growing. From Community gardens to Ooooby (Out of our own back yards), from Organiponico raised bed gardens to the recent 14 day Permaculture Design Course, and from Waiheke Seedsavers to CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), these are a few of the responses.

In August last year 25 people attended a meeting at the High School adult education rooms, to see if there was sufficient interest in exploring and developing a CSA. There was. Since then a few people have been beavering away and now a meeting has been scheduled so we can report back the substantial progress.

The following description from Wikipedia can serve as a starting point for understanding the essence of the idea. "A CSA consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the farmland becomes the community's farm, with the growers and consumers providing mutual support and sharing the risks and benefits of food production. CSA’s focus is usually on a system of weekly delivery or pick-up of vegetables and fruit, sometimes dairy products and meat. The term CSA is mostly used in the USA, but a variety of similar production and economic sub-systems are in use worldwide."

This celebratory and informative meeting will be your chance to get up to speed with the developments and learn about the opportunity of being part of Waiheke's first Community Supported Agriculture project. The presentations will take place at the Waiheke Community Cinema on Tuesday the 16th of June, from 7.00pm

Come along to hear more about your local CSA project, and watch some clips about CSA's in other parts of the world. Bookings essential. Please contact Jo Woodward, 09 372 5394, woodward@ihug.co.nz to reserve a space at the Cinema or to be kept informed.

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Note: Data collected in 2007 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicates that 12,549 farms in the United States reported marketing products through a community supported agriculture (CSA) arrangement.