Feed Northampton

system-wide northampton hubs (cont’d) Case Study for Village CSA An example of a village CSA is the East Lake Commons development in Georgia, where a farm is located on land that belongs to a neighborhood whose residents are the primary consumers of the farm’s crops. Food is directly distributed from the farm to the neighborhood. With the farm-fresh food are value-added products such as canned and dry goods, wine, dairy products, honey and herbal tinctures.

By creating a direct exchange between farmers and

East Lake Commons Village CSA. Photo courtesy of East Lake Commons

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Feed Northampton System-wide Hubs

neighborhood residents, these neighborhood CSAs are able to cultivate signature products for their neighborhood.

Revitalizing the relationship between the local residents of a community and local farmer is at the center of the village CSA concept.

Suggestion: Hampshire County Jail Hampshire County Jail, which abuts the Hospital Hill land, could start a job training program, linking to the Hospital Hill Village CSA farm. Job training could include food cultivation training and municipal compost management. Food produced could also be served at the jail cafeteria.

As these case studies and potential Northampton projects suggest, hubs may have very different ownership structures and management practices, fill different functional roles, and operate at very different scales. Collectively, however, they form essential infrastructure for a local food system, enabling critical cultivation, processing, distribution, waste management, and educational activities.