Current Status and Development Strategy for Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) in China

Haiying Tang, Ying Liu and Guoqin Huang
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Haiying Tang: Research Center on Ecological Sciences, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China
Ying Liu: Research Center on Ecological Sciences, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China
Guoqin Huang: Research Center on Ecological Sciences, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 11, 1-15

Abstract: Community-supported agriculture (CSA) is considered to be a new alternative mode for agricultural development, which has developed rapidly in China and attracted the attention of scholars, because it shows great concern on food safety, environmental protection and sustainable development of agriculture. Based on a comprehensive analysis of a large number of documents at home and abroad, this paper reviews the research on community-supported agriculture from the perspective of its origin, development process, characteristics, modes, functions and problems, aiming at summarizing the experiences and current problems and demonstrating recent research and development status of CSA in China in hope of providing references for its practice and research. The key conclusions in this review are: (1) CSA has a short history in China, but it is developing rapidly; (2) Chain’s CSA is characterized by a cooperative network with food safety as the primary development goal, agricultural product distribution as the main operation mode, and trust as the basis; (3) China’s CSA lacks of government’s support, and develops roughly at a small-scale. (4) With unique modes and functions, China’s CSA is facing some problems such as management, funding, talents, markets, technology and consumers’ trust. The development of CSA in China needs joint efforts from government, producers and consumers. China’s CSA needs to rely on its own advantages, make full use of its economic, social, ecological and cultural functions, combine Internet and ecological agricultural technology and explore the local modes with Chinese characteristics.

Keywords: Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA); current status; development strategy; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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