Resource Listing
The following resources are designed to help you get the information and support you need to start up a CSA, develop your CSA further or join a CSA. The information is designed for farmers, community groups and individuals.
A » Access to land
B » Business plan
- Example Contingency Planning Tool
Contingency planning tool that you can adapt for your farm and will help you think about mitigating against future problems.
- Business Continuity Presentation by Growing Communities
Presentation given as part of the Contingency Planning for Small Farms webinar by Katy Barker form Growing Communities
- Contingency Planning for Small Farms Webinar
Webinar on contingency planning for small farms
- Business plan (from the A-Z)
C » Communications
- Building and retaining membership of your CSA
Click below to access our two page guide to building – and retaining – new members for your CSA scheme. You can also view a recording of a webinar on the topic here.
- WEBINAR: Growing and keeping your CSA Membership
Four established CSAs share their tip and tricks for attracting new members to your CSA, and how to retain them.
- Communications (from the A-Z)
D » Distribution
- Presentation from Urgenci on Food Poverty
Presentation from Urgenci as part of our webinar on “How can UK CSAs help address food poverty”
- Presentation from Food Poverty Webinar: Rock Steady Farm
Rock Steady Farm’s Presentation from our webinar on “How UK CSAs can help address Food Poverty”
- How UK CSAs can help address food poverty: Webinar
A discussion of how, as small agroecological farmers we can combat food poverty and increase access to locally grown food.
Hear from CSAs both in the UK and across the world who are trying to address food poverty.
Panellists included: Humphrey Lloyd from Edible Futures , Jocelyn Parot from Urgenci , Dee Woods from Granville Community Kitchen, Maggie Cheney from Rock Steady Farm, New York
- Distribution (from the A-Z)
E » Events and educational activities
F » Funding
G » Growing
- WEBINAR: Digging Deeper into No Dig
- Using Google Forms for Crop Recording
Neil Hickson from Burscough Community Farm shares a simple way to create a functional crop recording tool.
- Building Resilient Seed Systems: Lessons from Latin America and Europe (Webinar Recording)
A walk through various international grassroots seed systems and how we can use these lessons to build our seed network here in the UK. - Irrigation Q&A
Recording of our Irrigation Q&A session from August 2020 with Pete Dollimore.
- Golf courses
You may have spotted an old golf course that could be a potential growing site. Before you do any growing please make sure you get a proper soil check done. This applies to anywhere you are going to grow but is particularly relevant on golf courses because of historical pesticide and fungicide use to keep the grass even and green. This means there is a possibility that both mercury residues as well as some persistent organic pollutant residues may be present. It may be fine – mercury compounds can be converted by bacteria in the soil into elemental mercury which is gradually dispersed in the air and lost, and other pesticides are supposed to break down after a few weeks leaving little if any residual toxicity. However, it could also not be and it is extremely important to check before anyone starts eating produce grown there. - Crop Suggestions for Extending the Season in Scotland
A list of varieties mentioned on our Extending the season in Scotland webinar 1st June 2020
- Webinar on “Buying In: The Whys, Wheres and Hows”
Hear from a panel operating in Scotland about the ins and outs of buying in and keeping supply chains local.
- Webinar on “Extending the Season in Scotland”
Hear from three Scottish growers on their tips for extending the season and growing through the winter.
- Growing (from the A-Z)
- The Community Farm planting plan
Example of sowing schedule from 2011 from The Community Farm, Bristol
- Loxley Valley Community Farm Crop Plan
A more extensive version of the crop planning tool developed by Loxley Valley Community Farm
- Horticultural cropping tool
Spreadsheet to help plan your cropping, estimate revenue and define planting area. Instructions on how to use the tool are on the second tab.
- Hungry gap fillers
Ideas for crops to fill the hungry gap in both outdoor and protected cropping systems
- Propagation for CSA farms
Suggestions on how to source seedlings and plants when propagation facilities are limited
H » Health and safety
I » Insurance
J » Jobs
K » Keeping animals
- Keeping animals (from the A-Z)
- Pig ignorant
An introductory Soil Association guide to small scale pig keeping
L » Legal structures
M » Members
N » New entrants
O » Organic certification
P » Publicity and promotion
- Publicity and promotion (from the A-Z)
- CSA Open Day poster – meat, B&W, ppt
- CSA Open Day poster – veg, B&W, ppt
- CSA Open Day poster – meat, colour, ppt
You can download this poster and print off yourself – and also edit the date and address.
- CSA Open Day poster – veg, colour, ppt
You can download this poster and print off yourself – and also edit the date and address
Q » Quantities
R » Rules and regulations
S » Starting up
- FACTSHEET: Setting up a Community-led CSA
Click below to access our two page guide on setting up a community-led CSA.
- FACTSHEET – Converting to a CSA
Click below to access our two page guide to converting your existing veg box scheme to a CSA…
- Starting up (from the A-Z)
- Share in the Harvest Appendices
- Share in the Harvest
An action manual for community supported agriculture produced by the Soil Association.
- Chagfood film
Short film of Chagfood Community Market Garden which is a great introduction to CSA.
T » Tools
U » Urban agriculture
V » Volunteers
- Volunteers (from the A-Z)
- Future Farmers 2
A guide to farm-based informal traineeships, to fit the gap between farm volunteering and formal apprenticeships.
W » Wales and What is CSA?
- CSA Charter
Here is the charter which sets out what we mean by CSA in the UK
- Why CSA works for Everyone: People, Planet and Producer
Recording of our Webinar on “Why CSA works for Everyone: People, Planet and Producer”
- Impact of CSA in Wales: Summary (Welsh)
Summary of research carried out from 2019-20 into the impact of CSA in Wales.
- Impact of CSA in Wales: Full Report
Full report of research carried out from 2019-20 into the impact of CSA in Wales.
- Impact of CSA in Wales: Summary (Eng)
Summary of research carried out from 2019-20 into the impact of CSA in Wales.
- What is CSA? (from the A-Z)
- Wales CSA Network Constitution
Wales CSA Network Constitution
- CSA Network UK progress report
A report on the achievements of the CSA Network UK from 2015-2017
- The impact of community supported agriculture
Evaluation report of CSA in the UK published by the Soil Association in 2011.
