Announcing: Regional CSA Conference

By: David Lynch

A statewide initiative on community supported agriculture (CSA) is being launched to bring together CSA producers and other farmers who are interested in the CSA model. Four state regions have been pinpointed for regional gatherings and will be conducted this spring to begin drawing together the Colorado CSA network. Guidestone and the Colorado Food Shed Alliance are collaborating to organize an event to include producers from the Arkansas River Watershed and the San Luis Valley. This is an exciting opportunity to promote practice of local food production and stimulate farmers to pursue the CSA business model. These regional meetings are being held to define the topics that will shape an agenda for a larger statewide gathering anticipated in 2010. The following plan is now set for our regional CSA event:

Date: February 15, Sunday
Location: Weathervane Farm
Time: 10 am to 4 pm

The agenda will include an introductory circle to learn about the regional CSA operations; a survey will be conducted to summarize the features of the CSA movement in the region. A potluck lunch and tour of the farm will follow. Two significant discussions will fill out the rest of the day:

1. Challenges and rewards of the CSA model
2. Directions for the future CSA movement

This will be a time of sharing and building our CSA community. CSA producers have long valued the opportunity to talk of their experiences, gather mutual support and learn from one another.