The role of social support in the participation of community supported agriculture

Abstract

Getting fresh organic products directly from the farmers is a growing phenomenon worldwide as an alternative to do the weekly grocery shop in the supermarkets. A well-defined form of this direct contact between producers and consumers is the community supported agriculture (CSA), where participation is seen as an intervention for health-behaviour by the scientific discourse. Using an explorative design, 35 semi-structured interviews were conducted with CSA members in Hungary. The collected data had been explored by thematic analysis. We identified three types of social influence patterns among the participant’s spouses. CSA can redefine the attributes of consumption (e.g. menu planning, storage, social events). In addition, the type and features of the spousal social support influences the maintenance, length of CSA membership. Receiving a more complete guide about CSA related lifestyle and the strategies for maintaining the participation, consumers can make their commitment to their membership stronger.