Proximity despite distance? A community-supported agriculture initiative across rural mountain and urban areas in Switzerland

Abstract

Various grassroots initiatives that have emerged in recent decades reduce our dependence on large-scale industrial agriculture. They decouple food value from volatile markets through close producer-consumer relations, displaying potential for food system transformations towards post-growth. Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) is an organizational form among them. While most CSAs cover short distances between farmers and consumers within (peri-)urban areas, this qualitative research focuses on an initiative in Switzerland that links rural mountains with urban areas. The study examines the role of institutional, organizational, cognitive, social, and experiential proximity among consumers and farmers in co-creating a food production and consumption system despite geographical distance. It found that consumers and farmers are facing challenges in establishing proximity; nevertheless, shared experiences of farming activities and social events, as well as participants' willingness to improve the CSA operation and strengthen ties for mutual understanding and joint efforts, contribute to the ongoing process of establishing proximity.