The question regarding net return was phrased: “About what is your typical annual net return
per acre from the CSA, above out of pocket costs?” Therefore, net return per acre as reported is most
likely gross revenue less operating costs of inputs, machinery and maintenance, and farmers
probably did not account for costs of labor, taxes and insurance or opportunity costs of land and
labor. As mentioned previously, the researchers in the Northeast came to the same conclusion, and
after including imputed labor expenses, they found the average imputed net income in 1997 to be
negative $4,834. This rough comparison suggests that the total net return for midwestern CSA
operations is less than for those in the Northeast. However, it is greater than the average net farm
income ($5,873, which includes government payments) for farms of one to nine acres reported in the
2002 USDA Census of Agriculture.