Cal Poly Organic Farm

Welcome to the Cal Poly Organic Farm

Over the past several years, the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project at Cal Poly has helped support our organic farm, which in turn, has helped us provide valuable learning opportunities to our students. We have been able to provide our subscribers with organically grown produce that you enjoy. We want to thank you for your subscription to our CSA and your support.

After a thorough analysis of the benefits, educational opportunities provided, and costs associated with the CSA project, it has become apparent that it is time to make a change in how we market and sell the produce from our organic farm. We intend to discontinue our CSA project so that we can provide our students even greater opportunities for learning about organic agriculture, growing a wider diversity of crops and marketing the produce.

Why discontinue our CSA program?

A Letter to CSA Subscribers (PDF)
A Letter to CSA Suppliers (PDF)

First and foremost, from the educational standpoint, we will be able to provide a broader array of opportunities for our students. Currently, in order to provide for the large number of subscribers, we grow a limited array of produce on a larger scale, and use outside vendors to add variety to the boxes that we distribute. With the change, we can grow smaller amounts of any given vegetable, but use the acreage to grow many more crops. We will also have the flexibility to grow experimental crops, conduct experiments on cultural practices, and allow more student projects since we will not have the obligation to distribute the vegetables to our subscribers.

Second, from a cost standpoint, the CSA business model as a vegetable distribution program is very expensive to operate and has annually run at a deficit. The deficit has typically been covered by funds from the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, or the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science or one time donations from private sources. In these tough economic times we are now forced to examine the costs associated with all of our programs and prioritize according to the benefits they bring to our students. We do not believe that the answer is to drastically increase subscription fees.

By focusing solely on the CSA model, we have not given our students access to the full spectrum of what it means to be an organic grower in the state of California. Cal Poly is a recognized leader in the education of students who graduate with all of the skills and experience needed to immediately enter and effectively contribute to the agriculture industry. As mentioned earlier, a dynamic transition is taking place that includes new crops and new production and marketing practices, student special projects, and research such as testing new varieties and growing methods. This transition will benefit our students, the community, our industry partners and the whole of California’s agricultural industry.

The Cal Poly Organic Farm CSA program is scheduled to conclude on August 30. However, our organic farm food production will continue and shortly afterwards you will be able to purchase the organic farm’s products through other avenues. If your current subscription is scheduled to end after that date, you will receive a pro-rated refund of your fee.

We sincerely thank you for your past, current and ongoing support of our Cal Poly Organic Farm program. The Organic Farm has been and will continue to be an important part of our Horticulture and Crop Department's educational programs and we look forward to enhancing our educational efforts to help teach students about organic farming and making organic and locally grown products available to our friends and neighbors.