FRAMINGHAM, MA -- Tom Hanson of Hanson's Farm, 20 Nixon Rd., Framingham will present a talk on community supported agriculture at Annie's Book Stop in the Nobscot Plaza, 774 Water St., Framingham on Wednesday, Jan 13,at 7.00 p.m.

Community Supported Agriculture is in such demand all across New England that many CSAs have people on waiting lists one or two years long. By paying a fee up front, members are entitled to a share in the season's crop and a small farm benefits by spreading the cash flow out across the season. Join us at this meeting, sponsored by the Nobscot Neighbors Association, and learn all about this wildly popular new way of bringing home the groceries.

The CSA model appeals to a wide range of people: foodies who will settle for nothing less than the freshest fruits and vegetables that have ripened naturally. It appeals to environmentalists who want to buy from local sources, rather than support interstate transport from mega-farms on the West Coast or in South America. And it appeals to those who want to support local farms as a way to preserve the rural character of their community. Stearns Farm on Edmands Road has operated as a CSA since 1990.

For over a hundred years the Hanson family has worked their Nixon Road farm, with about 52 acres in fruits and vegetables and another 100 in hay and field corn. As far back as any of us can remember, Tom, Martha and son, Matt Hanson have sold their produce and flowers at the roadside farmstand and at farmer's markets throughout this part of the state. Last year they launched a CSA and membership sold out in the first season. Tom says the CSA program is an ideal way to embrace the needs of modern families while honoring the farm's agricultural history.

The Nixon Road farm is also home to a pick-your-own program and an annual halloween event that has come to be known as Tom and Matt's Excellent Adventure.