Formulating a Plan: Sustainable Agriculture Courtney Banh and Carleigh Hazlett

Our Task  Promoting sustainable agriculture while educating our community, minimizing costs, and providing healthy, local food alternatives

Courses of Action Options we considered

Option 1: Austin High Stand  Through the Austin High Garden Club, we can set up a weekly farm stand on campus  Garden Club members can assist us in working the stand  CONS:  Inconsistency and unpredictability of business  People are more unlikely to buy unfamiliar produce  On a good business, the demand for produce may be larger than our supply  PROS:  We would have more diverse customers (students, teachers, staff)  People can buy produce of their choice and spend the amount of money they are willing to spend

Option 2: Farmer’s Market Stand  Take produce from Austin High garden to sell at local Farmer’s Market  Barton Creek Mall Farmers Market, South Austin Farmer’s Market (South Congress), and Corner of South Lamar and Bluebonnet Farmer’s Market  PROS:  An even larger customer outreach,  Working alongside people who do the same thing and learning from local entrepreneurs  CONS:  We would have to get a food permit  We would have to pay a monthly fee to be able to sell produce  The farm’s size is not large enough to make a profit

Option 3: Austin High CSA  Create a Community Supported Agriculture program  Teachers will buy into our garden  We deliver straight from the garden  PROS:  Teachers are a more consistent and reliable consumer base  Buyers are able to see who grows their food, what is being grown, where it is being grown, and how it is being grown  CONS:  Teachers may not like all the vegetables  Teachers may not be at school on delivery days  More teachers want to join than there are spots available

Collaborators Professionals and organizations with experience in sustainable agriculture, and the people whose help has been integral to our project

Johnson’s Backyard  Mission: to provide their members with the best quality, locally grown, organic vegetables possible  Has farms in Austin, Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston  Has grown since 2006 from a small, working garden then transitioned into a 30-member- CSA  Now, they have expanded to over 1,000 members over 50+ acres.  Their produce can be found at farmers markets, local grocers and many local restaurants.  Different share sizes at varied prices  Pick-up and home delivery available  Membership is seasonal  Opportunities for customers and public to volunteer

Green Gate Farms  A certified organic farm established in 2006 in East Austin  They have the New Farm Institute to educate the public on sustainable farming.  Have a CSA, a farm stand, and farm camps  Volunteering and employment  Weekly/biweekly harvests of fruits and vegetables along with organic meat, eggs, and flowers for their CSA  Farm and land is available to explore (canoeing, camping, and field trips)  Online ordering is available

Boggy Creek Farm  Owned by Carol Ann and Larry Sayle  An urban, certified organic farm in East Austin  Established in 1992  One of Austin’s longest running organic farms  Has a weekly farm stand  We interviewed Carol Ann for her insight as an urban farmer and toured the farm.

Austin High Garden Club  Our sponsor and fellow members have helped us every Friday morning.  Without their support, our CSA would not have been as productive.  Composting, harvesting, planting, and distributing are some weekly duties.  Profe Sclerandi has mentored us throughout our project and has offered us pointers on how to improve and maintain our project.

Our Buyers  Last semester: McCorquodale, Lewis, Turner, Giannou, Webster, Griffith, Steiner and Whipple  This semester: McCorquodale, Lewis, Turner, Giannou, Webster, Griffith, Quackenbush, and Smith

Taking Action How to implement an effective project with maximum impact

What we thought we were going to  Hand out information packets that detailed what a CSA was and what vegetables we would be growing  Collect membership fee from teachers, $20 to $30  Use fees to directly buy garden supplies  Make weekly deliveries to teachers

What we realized we had to do  We had to request to fund raise and go through the Garden Club account.  We collected money and legally deposited it into our account.  We had to figure out a way to efficiently transport the produce to the customers.  We had to figure out the best time to deliver things to the teachers and what to do with it when they were not there.

Problems we faced  Teachers not liking vegetables of the week  Inefficient modes of delivery  Teachers are sometimes unavailable during delivery  Deciding on work share and customer share  Mainly in encouraging club members to take home produce for themselves as compensation for the work they put into the garden.

Improvements we have made  Instead of equally distributing small quantities of each vegetable, we made different bundles with appropriate serving sizes of each vegetable.  We purchased produce bags in place of the large garbage bags we had previously used.  If teachers are not there when we deliver their vegetables or they choose not to take that week’s harvest, we give the produce to a teacher outside of our CSA.  Given the expected spring harvests, some teachers decided to discontinue their membership, and new teachers joined in their place.

Communication Educating our audience

Advertising our CSA and Garden Club  A garden rap has been in the making  Austin High:  CSA information packet given to teachers  Word of mouth: Profe has told teachers around the school about our project  Public:  2013 AISD SHAC meeting  Had a booth at Clint Small Green fest