Community Supported Market
A CSM is an innovative variation of the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model, which is a partnership between consumers and farmers. Typically, consumers, called shareholders, buy a share of a farm and pay for their share early in the season. This guarantees the farmer will have the necessary income to cover start-up expenses, such as seed and other supplies and is, then, a way for shareholders to support a farm. Since 2006, workplace-based shareholders have been able to support a market and receive produce from all of the farmers at the Fair Haven market through the CSM.
Beginning in July 2008, CitySeed began to deliver subsidized shares to community sites through the CSM - thereby providing access to fresh produce at a reduced cost to nutritionally at-risk community members, including WIC, Senior and Food Stamp recipients.
Read about the positive impact of the CSM in this New Joural article, printed in September 2007.
