Introduction from a new CSA, an invitation, and a request for help

[Graham Mitchell]

Hello to all on this list

My name is Graham and this is my first posting to this group, so please be gentle if I miss some points of etiquette.

I'd like to introduce a new CSA that I'm part of. We are called Terra CSA (some of you may have already come across us). We are a cooperative grouping of small family-run farms in Catalunya (north eastern Spain) learning/practising regenerative agriculture and seeking to provide our produce to consumers in the UK utilising a CSA model. We've been working over the last two to three years on the development of the project, and there's still some way to go, but we are aiming to get our first delivery of produce to UK cropsharers this winter.

We are a bit different from most CSAs, which are generally geographically close to their members/subscribers. Whilst this local model is great for produce that can be grown locally, it doesn't really work for things like olive oil. This is where Terra CSA comes in. We want to build the same direct trust relationships that exist with CSAs that are geographically close to the people that consume their produce, because we strongly believe that we should be able to know the people that produce our food, and trust that they will work in our interests to produce good healthy food that is good for people and for the planet. And when the farm is 1500 miles or so from your house, that trust and those shared values are all the more important. And, like any small farmer, we can benefit from sharing the risk and reward with our cropshare members, which will help to ensure that we have the best chance of viability.

Terra CSA is currently two small fincas, Finca Slow and Finca Tàperes (Tàperes is the Catalan word for capers) owned by two British families, and we are working in partnership with the well regarded and long established Instituto Permacultura Montsant (Montsant Permaculture Institute). We are all in the Tarragona province of southern Catalunya. The two fincas were purchased in 2013 and are in process of being converted to 'beyond organic' production by employing permaculture principles, holistic management techniques and a regenerative agriculture approach. The common approach to farming here is to make extensive use of chemical inputs, which as we know severely damages the soil microbiology and adversely affects fertility. Indeed such farming practices have substantially contributed to the very real process of desertification in many parts of the Mediterranean basin. Since taking ownership we've been working to restore the land, regenerate and build our soils, and develop a truly sustainable approach. It is very early days, and we have along way to go, but it is exciting stuff. We are now receiving enquiries from other farmers interested in what we are doing, so if things go well our network could grow.

We grow mainly olives and almonds. Both crops are widely produced here (albeit using chemical farming methods), and the olive oil and almonds from this part of the world are some of the best available. Olive oil and almonds are also widely recognised for their health benefits, and both products are well suited to a perennial permaculture food forest, which is what we are working to create. We are aiming to complement these products with red wine from grapes grown by the Instituto Permacultura Montsant (they are based at a higher altitude on the edge of the world famous Priorat wine growing area, and the soil and climate there is well suited to producing good wines). 

That's the introduction over.

On to the invitation and request for your help - well several actually.

Research

Most importantly we want to learn from other CSAs. We think that what we are doing is of interest to other CSAs, who might want to work in partnership with us to make our produce available to their CSA members/cropsharers. Our produce complements rather than competes with what you are already doing, and we share common values, so we think it would be great to work together. We've set up a short online survey on our website to test this thinking, and we invite all CSAs on this list to respond to it. It's at http://terra.coop/csa-survey

There's more: we would love it if you could pass the word on to your members/cropsharers/customers and encourage them to give us their views. We've set up a second survey geared to individuals and households so that we can gather their views. This is at http://terra.coop/csa-member-survey

Every response to the survey is really important to us as your opinions will help us to work out whether we are barking up the wrong tree or not, so once we finalise what we are going to offer and how, based on what we learn from this research, we'll provide a healthy discount to every person and organisation that responds to the survey.

Event

That's not all. We are putting on a small "Talk and Taste" event and we want as many of you as possible to come along. It's free, it's on the evening of June 21 at 5pm, and it's at Loaf Community Bakery in Stirchley, Birmingham. Our very own Dan McTiernan will be giving the talk, explaining more about some of the issues that underpin what Terra is all about and why we are doing what we are, and of course there will be samples of our fabulous olive oil, almonds and wine available so that you get a real flavour of what we are working to provide. A little flyer for the event is attached to this post, and we'd be really grateful if you could circulate that to your networks. It will be small, informal and hopefully hugely enjoyable event, and we hope to see you there.

Support

Lastly, just like the CSA Network we are looking for crowdfunding support for what we building. We've already raised well over £2000 and are seeking additional Founder Members who believe in what we are trying to achieve, and want to lend a helping hand. Visit our website at http://terra.coop for more on that. Or you can simply sign up to our low volume mailing list to keep up with news from us.

Thanks for reading this far, thanks very much for your help on this project and best wishes from all of us here at Terra CSA. If you've got any questions, please post them here or email me directly at gra...@terra.coop

Graham