Community Supporting Agriculture
Direct marketing not the complete answer.
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a wonderful example of how a holistic approach can lead to better outcomes for all parties. In this article below, I look at a couple of other concepts that could complement CSA.
Farming Success Factors
Direct marketing seems to be the Holy Grail of farming these days. However, my research has found that on its own this will not make a farmer viable. I found that farmers that are viable, or close to viability have the following in common:
- Technically excellent producers
- Built up excellent soil (process takes many years)
- Direct market to consumers
- Very low labour inputs or high degree of mechanisation
- Very low capital costs (esp land acquisition and machinery)
- Cover all aspects of running the business, either personally or through outsourcing.
Holistic solutions needed
I believe that we need to explore solutions that address these factors holistically, rather than come up with more partial solutions. A couple of concepts that have the potential to do this include Farm Clusters and Farm Business Centres.
Farm clusters are individually operated farms that are co-located within the same boundary. The Cluster is developed to share infrastructure, running costs, and expertise. This is similar to the Business Park concept in urban areas.
Farm Business Centres would provide business services specifically for farmers in the Cluster. Services would include finances, marketing, labour pool, machinery pool, business advice etc. The Centre would be owned by the farmers in the Cluster.
Why is this important?
Market forces are leading to an unsustainable situation. The average age of farmers is 61 and increasing. The average debt of farms is now in the millions.
In addition, very few small farm producers I have spoken to are able to answer yes to the following questions regarding viability:
- Does on-farm income support you entirely?
- Do you pay yourself at least as much as your employees (hourly basis)?
- Do you cover all/most aspects of running the business?
- Are you sustainable in the long-term?
If we want farming to be attractive to new farmers and younger farmers, it needs to be a demonstrably viable proposition.
Farming plays a vital and basic role in our survival and as such, I believe it deserves special consideration. It is not just another small business.
Personal decisions
All of this has had an impact on my farming decisions. Commercially, I will now focus on produce that requires relatively low labour inputs. Eg. fruit, garlic, broadbeans, potatoes and pumpkins. And primarily for extended family, friends and myself.
Fundamentally I am positive, because history has shown that as conditions become worse, people rally around to create the change we need.
What now?
I'm part of a team that is bringing Food Connect to Sydney
What is Food Connect?
Food Connect is a community supporting agriculture program that links farmers directly to customers. It will source predominantly organic produce from local and regional family farms within five hours of Sydney. Food Connect Subscribers receive a weekly box of fruit and vegetables which is picked up from a "City Cousin" in their neighbourhood. Boxes come in different sizes and types and extra items can be ordered in addition to the box.
Julian Lee
Wikipedia: Community Supported Agriculture
