Support from city folk takes root on the farm

Reading The Long Emergency makes this treehugger start thinking about what to write- no more nuclear batteries, lets talk about where our next meal is coming from. For example, many people are now investing in Community Supported Agriculture- (CSA), where they prepay to a local farmer for a years worth of vegetables and produce. Family farmers who were working three jobs to hang on to the farm now have investors who take a share of the harvest. "It's been a lifeline," one farmer says with a catch in her voice. "Spring is when we need the money. It's when we buy the seeds. It's there when the propane bill comes for the greenhouses."

The idea started with co-ops in Chile in the 70's and spread to Switzerland and Germany, and is now growing in America. "Supermarkets have almost completely isolated the consumer from the natural food production cycle," Now families are learning why foods are seasonal and are excited by each new arrival. read ::USA today by [LA]and read earlier post on Boston CSA project here