Online Extra Fresh& Local
CSAs bring fresh produce to you while helping local farmers.

by Laura McAlister
It wasn’t until Jerry Spencer started looking to expand his farm that he realized how troubled many Alabama farmers were. So instead of purchasing more equipment and land near his Mt Laurel farm, he sought the help of other farmers.

“I just saw the difficulties of farming in Alabama and the fact that farmers are not really doing very well,” he said. “I started thinking about having other farmers grow what I needed in order to expand and give them participation in this method of marketing. It really is catching on.”

The method of marketing is called Community Supported Agriculture, and it has, slowly but surely, been catching on. Spencer started Grow Alabama about two years ago. It now has more than 500 members who purchase produce from about 50 local farmers. Spencer hopes it will continue to grow even more. Other farms in Alabama, like Snow’s Bend Farm in Coker, also have started CSAs.

How it works
Members pay a monthly fee, and in return they have fresh produce delivered weekly to them or to a distribution point. Monthly fees for Grow Alabama start from about $98 and go up to around $150 depending on the plan.

The produce delivered each week depends some on the time of year but is customizable. Each week, a list of available produce is listed on Grow Alabama's website, and members can pick which ones they want based on their plan.

As far the participating farmers, Spencer said if they grow quality produce, he commits to purchasing it.

“The farmers have a profit-sharing plan in Grow Alabama,” he said. “It’s not a hard contract, but a marketing agreement. If they grow what I ask and it’s good quality, I promise to buy what they grow.”

Basically, it takes out the middleman for the farmer, Spencer said, allowing the farmers to profit more.

When a farmer expresses interested in participating in the program, Spencer travels to the farm to help determine what their land would be best suited for growing. Then they set up a crop plan.

Who benefits?
Everyone benefits, according to Spencer. “There’s just no question about it,” he said. “There’s no losing on any level of this.”

It helps members by connecting them to local farmers and introducing them to locally grown produce. Most importantly, Spencer says, is it’s fresh, organic produce that’s almost all grown in Alabama, not shipped from a wholesale farm in California where it was picked early and showered with pesticides.

Members also can get a range of produce with as many as 40 vegetables delivered throughout the season in 20 varieties. Spencer is working to increase those numbers and offer an even broader range of choices.

The CSA even helps the economy by keeping family farms in business spending their money here, Spencer said.

“More than 95 percent of all produce bought in this state comes from some other state,” Spencer said. “That’s just not acceptable. That represents more than $5 billion of lost revenue to this state and our community.”

Spencer says simple economics shows that if you give money back to local farmers, they in turn will re-circulate money in the community.

What’s in store for the future?
Spencer acknowledges his operation is small now, but he’s not giving up. “We’re a very small operation with a big vision,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy.” Spencer said he’s received little help from the state, “that’s a travesty in itself,” he said. But he’s not deterred.

In the future, as production increases, the program will be expanded to grocery stores and restaurants, Spencer said. In the end, he’d like membership to exceed 50,000.

“That’s what it really needs to be to make the difference that we want to make for Alabama and our communities,” he said.

To find out more information go to growalabama.com.
January Birmingham, Alabama

  

 
Digital Newstand

View Magazine

bmag buzz

What are you doing
this Weekend?
 



 
bmag bonus


This Month's Giveaway ...
Tickets to the Rigling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus, which will be in Birmingham from Jan. 28-Feb. 1.

Sign up for our weekly e-newsletter,
the bmag buzz, and be automatically entered for your chance to win!