Local links help small scale farms

Small to mid-size farmers and growers struggling to find secure markets and a fair price for their produce can help combat these problems by forging direct links with local consumers.

Over 100 schemes across the UK are successfully connecting producers with their local community and the Soil Association - the UK's leading promoter of organic food - is encouraging more farmers to join. All types of enterprise can benefit - not just organic - from urban allotments to mixed farms.

Schemes are diverse and currently include:

· allotment plots, where local people pay for vegetables ahead of harvest,

· larger farms where members of the community commit to purchasing a set amount of meat or dairy products each month;

· orchards, where the producer leases fruit trees, in return for a share of the trees' harvest;

· livestock farms, where the farmer sells shares in the farm's cattle to members, paying the interest with cheese or milk.

Some members of these projects take a more active role by helping with cultivation, weeding or packing the weekly box scheme.

The Soil Association is hoping to expand the number of producers involved in similar projects to ensure a sustainable farming future. These projects are often referred to as Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) schemes and are co-ordinated by the Soil Association's Cultivating Communities section.

Greg Pilley, Soil Association Cultivating Communities Co-ordinator says, "As more small and mid-sized farms experience increasing pressure from their industrialised rivals, CSA schemes offer an alternative. These projects support the local economy and allow farmers to concentrate on producing food, safe in the knowledge that there is an end market."

While many projects are run on land that is certified as organic or biodynamic, the Soil Association is encouraging non-organic enterprises to join. Producers who are thinking about converting to organic production often find that CSA projects provide financial stability, and help provide funds towards the initial stages of going fully organic.