There are two different stories for the introduction of community
supported agriculture in the U.S. One story credited the idea of community supported agriculture
to Japan and the introduction of Teikei (or partnerships) in the 1970s. Teikei originally started
with a group of Japanese women concerned about the produce available in local markets. These
women began paying farmers directly to raise organic vegetables for them. Okumara (2004),
whose mother was a Teikei participant, described the Teikei organization saying, “It is common
to have a group of several farmers, dispersed throughout the countryside, networking with
groups of many households to supply a consistent and diverse selection of products throughout
the year”