CISA (Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture)

What CISA (Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture) does

CISA (Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture) is a Massachusetts-based non-profit founded in 1993 and headquartered in Deerfield, with 11-50 employees. Its mission, as stated in its own short description, is to strengthen farms and engage the community in building the local food economy, primarily serving Hampshire County farms and Pioneer Valley consumers in New England.

The organization operates as a regional agricultural intermediary rather than a product or technology company. Its activities center on community engagement around locally produced food, supported through public-facing channels including its website buylocalfood.org. CISA's evidence base points to grant-funded operations and convening activities: it received a $750,000 award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture in October 2021, and in March 2026 it was a co-recipient of over $230,000 in grants alongside six Hampshire County farms, as part of a $3.3 million Massachusetts state funding package announced by Governor Maura Healey on Massachusetts Agricultural Day. No products, services catalog, technology stack, app, API, or proprietary platform components are disclosed in the available data.

CISA's business model is consistent with a small regional non-profit: revenue appears to derive primarily from government and foundation grants rather than commercial pricing. Pricing models, customer segments, headcount detail, management team, and any earned-income streams are not disclosed. The organization maintains a core partnership posture with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and with the Hampshire County farm network, functioning as both a recipient and a coordinator of agricultural support funding.

Name

CISA (Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture)

Website

https://buylocalfood.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CISA is a Deerfield, Massachusetts non-profit founded in 1993 that strengthens Western Massachusetts farms and engages the community in building the local food economy, serving Hampshire County farms and Pioneer Valley consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Community Support Services

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Community Food Services (624210)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (Fair Trade, Food Access, Regenerative) (BPAGALAD)

Keywords

• Local food advocacy
• Farm grant programs
• Community agriculture engagement
• Sustainable farming support
• Agricultural education

Headquarters

HQ city

Deerfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Core offering

CISA is a nonprofit organization that strengthens local farms and engages the community in building the regional local food economy. It supports farms through grant funding for equipment and infrastructure improvements and uses its buylocalfood.org platform to connect community members with local food producers across Hampshire County, Massachusetts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Local Farm Grant Program Grant funding distributed to local farms in Hampshire County, Massachusetts for equipment and infrastructure improvements, made possible by state and federal agricultural funding channels.
• buylocalfood.org Local Food Directory Consumer-facing online directory hosted at buylocalfood.org that helps community members find and purchase from local farms and food producers in western Massachusetts.
• Community Local Food Engagement Programs Community engagement programs that build consumer awareness and participation in the regional local food economy alongside CISA's farm strengthening activities.

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Hampshire County FarmscoreOthersSix other Hampshire County farms alongside CISA received grants totaling over $230,000 as part of the Massachusetts Agricultural Day funding announcement. CISA collaborates with these farms to strengthen the local agricultural ecosystem.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• New England Farmers Union: Membership-based advocate for New England farm policy and local food systems. Comparable mission and region to CISA, though structurally focused on policy advocacy rather than direct farm support.
• Wholesome Wave: Nonprofit focused on affordable access to fresh, local food through SNAP-incentive programs. Operates in similar local-food access mission as CISA, with overlapping focus on Northeast US.
• Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA): Regional nonprofit supporting organic and sustainable farming across the Northeast through education, certification, and advocacy. Directly comparable to CISA in geography, mission, and program structure.
• Local Harvest: Online directory and resource hub connecting consumers to local farms and CSAs. Comparable in supporting the local food economy and operating consumer-facing farm-discovery tools similar to buylocalfood.org.

Regional players

• Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming: Hudson Valley-based nonprofit advancing regenerative agriculture and regional food systems. Comparable mission emphasis on local farms and food systems, though operating in a different sub-region than CISA.
• Food Solutions New England: Network collaborating across New England to build a just and sustainable regional food system. Comparable geographic focus and mission alignment with CISA's local-food-economy work.

Broad incumbents

• The Food Trust: National nonprofit addressing food access, nutrition education, and healthy food retail. Compares to CISA on the food-access/community-engagement dimension, though broader in scope and geography.
• American Farmland Trust: National nonprofit focused on farmland conservation and farmer viability. Comparable in mission alignment with sustainable agriculture, but operates at significantly larger scale and broader geography than CISA.
• Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE): USDA-funded program funding sustainable agriculture research and education nationwide. Compares to CISA in funding and informing sustainable-agriculture practice but operates as a federally mandated grant program.
• EcoTrust: Regional nonprofit investing in regenerative agriculture, forests, and food systems across the Pacific Northwest. Comparable as a place-based food-and-farming nonprofit, though operating in a different geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/community-involved-in-sustaining-agriculture-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CISA (Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture)