Deep Roots

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National Farmers Union:

we are all citizens of the world

Roger Johnson, President of National Farmers Union

ounded in 1902 to help family farmers address

profitability issues and monopolistic practices in

the United States, the National Farmers Union

(NFU) has since been working to protect and enhance the

economic well-being and quality of life of family farmers,

ranchers and rural communities through advocating grass-

roots driven policy positions adopted by its membership.

NFU represents family farmers and ranchers in all states, with

organized divisions in 33 states. The key to the success and

credibility of the organization has been its grass-roots struc-

ture in which policy positions are initiated locally. Two of the

areas that NFU has spent a considerable amount of time on

are how agriculture can boost local economies and how small

family farmers can help address world food security.

Rob McClure and Erin Schneider would probably not be

considered your stereotypical type of farmers. The couple

operates Hilltop Community Farm (Hilltop) in LaValle,

Wisconsin. Unlike many farms in the area, Hilltop doesn’t

produce simply commodity crops. “We have about 53 differ-

ent types of vegetables that represent 153 varieties, plus lot of

herbs and about a dozen fruits including hardy kiwi, apples

and raspberries,” said Schneider.

But what really sets Hilltop apart from many other farms in

the area – or in the rest of the United States for that matter

– is that the farm operates under a model known as a commu-

nity supported agriculture (CSA). “The model for a CSA is

built on the notions of relationships and trust,” explained

Schneider.

Unlike other farms that look to market their produce directly

to the public after harvest, CSAs build relationships with

customers well before planting; they attain funding from the

people for whom they grow food, not from commercial banks,

like many other farmers. “It’s similar to a magazine subscrip-

tion,” explained Schneider. “Our members subscribe to our

farm for 20 weeks and get to experience the ups and downs

of farming and the food cycle. Patrons make a commitment

to fund our work and we make a commitment to grow them

socially conscious, healthy and sustainable food. We also offer

opportunities for members to participate in the farm through

events, and share recipes, newsletter articles and ideas.”

Schneider explained that as Hilltop is a small-scale diversi-

fied fruit and vegetable farm, she and McLure see their role

as ecological stewards and collaborators in building resilient,

regenerative food systems and sharing the harvest of edibles

and ideas with the rest of the world.

Small farmers take many risks, she said, and there are not a

lot of really effective tools available for speciality crop farmers

to handle the risks that are thrown at them day in and day out.

“Having subscribers gives us the cash flow that we need and the

sense of security that commodity farmers get from purchasing

crop insurance, which isn’t available for many speciality crops.

CSAs are a way for farmers to keep from having to go to banks

and beg for big operating loans,” she said.

The subscription, paid by families as far as 100 miles away,

helps fund the costs of operating for the overall farm season,

making it a very direct, long-term commitment that is mutu-

ally beneficial for both the grower and the eater. “We get

direct feedback from our members and they find their lives

enriched by the diversity of fresh fruits and vegetables that

they might not find at the grocery store,” said Schneider.

This approach to farming is good for small landowners

because of its intensity, and good for the rural communi-

ties where they live because the farms bring in capital from

outside the community and generate wealth in the form of

good, healthy food. Schneider noted that the CSA model –

Farmers Erin Schneider and Rob McClure of Hilltop Community Farm,

a small-scale, diverse CSA farm and orchard

Image: Barb Steinhorst

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