V. TERZIEV1 and E. ARABSKA2
1 Vasil Levski National Military University, BG-5000 Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria
2 University of Agribusiness and Rural Development, BG-4003 Plovdiv, Bulgaria
TERZIEV, V. and E. ARABSKA, 2016. Sustainable rural development through organic production and community-supported agriculture in Bulgaria. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 22: 527–535
Considering the priorities of sustainable development in the context of assurance food quality and safety and rural development, the paper underlines the importance of agri-food sector and the elaboration and the implementation of new methods and instruments in management of small and medium agricultural holdings. The study addresses organic production as an overall systematic approach having a great potential for assuring sustainable growth in rural areas, and it is discussed in terms of the opportunities provided by alternative food networks, and community supported agriculture in particular. The study presented reveals the most important questions in the development of community supported agriculture (CSA) in Bulgaria and its link to organic production development. The focus in the following discussion is put on the functioning of CSA groups in the country making a proposal for a model of establishment and management underlining the signifi cance of motivation, communication and feedbacks and envisaging the application of the concept of corporate social responsibility.