Catskills Agrarian Alliance

Catskills Agrarian Alliance (CAA) is a new collaborative nonprofit formalizing the work our local farmers have been doing in our region for over a decade.  Program areas include:

• Community-Supported Agriculture model (plus add-ons) for Schoharie, Otsego, and Delaware counties, and NYC. The CSA currently serves over 800 households and 45 farm and food businesses.  The CSA prioritizes diversity over efficiency, ensuring all people within our geographic range have the same access to our partner-farms’ food.  We do this through the inclusion of sliding-scale shares, solidarity shares, SNAP, and intentionally inefficient trucking (i.e. we are willing to go to far-flung locations to serve interested members even if not in the best interest of our bottom line).
• Food Justice initiatives. CAA fundraises with and for partner organizations to create an agreed upon line of credit. Once orders are received, we purchase food from member farms, and deliver to partners (upstate pantries and NYC-based mutual aid groups).
• Mutual Aid Farm Model. CAA rents farmland from Star Route Farm, LLC in order to operate an agroecological peasant farm. All the vegetables produced are donated to our mutual aid partners. The farm invites members of the communities served to crop-plan and participate in production and also hosts an incubator program for aspiring farmers.
• Land Access Leadership. Initiatives with the goal of securing an inclusive future for farming in the Western Catskills, CAA acts as a bridge between funders and farmers to secure available land for responsible stewardship by underrepresented farmers.
• Farmer Incubation Project. We are networking with established Hudson Valley farm-education partners to develop Catskills-based on-farm classes geared for aspiring BIPOC and LGBTQ+ urban farmers based in New York City and the surrounding community. The Incubator Program supports folks in gaining access to rural spaces. Currently, incubation happens at Star Route Farm, but soon we hope to establish a program at the Catskills Agrarian Commons.
• Value-chain-facilitation for partner farms. Expanding market access for farmers by delivering to members, restaurants, markets, schools, pantries, and social justice partners.
• Farm-to-Institution partnerships. CAA fundraises to purchase food from member farms to participate in farm-to-school programs.
• Trucking and logistics services for partner farms.