We envision a Michigan where health has improved, the viability of diversified family farms has increased, and our public is food secure.

The Michigan CSA Network was started as the Michigan Statewide Working Group, and exists as a platform for CSA farmers and support organizations to meet, learn, collaborate and network to achieve the goals of small farm viability and increased food access and equity.

The working group was started as a place for organizations that were specifically interested in utilizing CSAs as a tool for providing food access. While that is still an important goal of the Network, the work is expanding to include statewide CSA farmer and consumer research through surveys and focus groups, statewide CSA marketing campaigns and virtual CSA open house events.

This new iteration of the Michigan CSA Network will also be providing new education for CSA farmers looking to adapt and innovate to reach new customers and utilize food assistance programs for payment.

This project is being supported by the USDA Farm Market Promotion Program Grant.

Our Mission

To create a collaborative learning space to engage farmers, organizations, and consumers in improving farm viability, expanding participation, and enabling equitable access to Community Supported Agriculture.

Our Core Values

  • Create spaces for learning and sharing

  • Include all voices

Our Goals

1) Expand access to CSAs through alternative payment methods

2) Increase consumer CSA participation by 50% across the state

3) Expand engagement with the CSA Network by 50% each year

4) Make supportive resources widely available for those who want to start or have a CSA

Our Strategic Planning Process

The Michigan CSA Network is excited to release our Three-Year Strategic Plan to help drive network engagement and action. This plan will serve as a blueprint for network activities and priorities for the next three years and will provide a space for farmers to become more engaged in network activities and leadership.

Developing a three-year strategy for a statewide network is no easy task and was not something that MI CSA Network leadership completed on their own. It was a year-long process from start to finish and required countless hours of virtual and in-person meetings, discussions with planning consultants, and input from CSA farmers and organizations across the state. The first step was finding a trusted partner to help guide the network through this process and the leadership team settled on the duo of Michelle Napier-Dunnings and Jo Anna “JT” Trierweiler, experienced strategic planning consultants who have worked with several farm-based and food systems-focused organizations in Michigan. The initial meetings with our consultants helped to craft a strategic visioning event held at the Ziibiwing Center in Mount Pleasant in November of 2022. At this event, we engaged over 30 farmers and CSA stakeholders to collaboratively create a vision for the future of CSA in Michigan and a path for the network to walk toward that future.

Following the visioning event the network leadership team worked with our consultants to create the one-page strategic plan that will connect the network's actions and priorities to the mission, vision, and core values that were crafted with the visioning results. This process included multiple meetings with consultants and Zoom feedback sessions with stakeholders to ensure their priorities were represented in the plan. With the now completed three-year strategic plan, the Network is excited to move into this next phase of development, centering farmers and other CSA stakeholders in the Network.