How do you as shareholders know that our practices are truly sustainable and the healthiest options possible? Our farm is open to you and the general public every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. If you are interested in our practices, please come to the farm and check it out. We keep rigorous records of all of the inputs (and their sources) used on our fields, within our greenhouse and anywhere else related to the CSA. All CSA members are welcome to look through these records.

Although we grow according to organic principles we are not Certified Organic. We do not use any chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, or anything else for the CSA. All of our inputs from seed to fruit will adhere to the organic standards. We are also committed to protecting our soil by creating extensive crop rotational plans each year, as well as incorporating organic matter each season. Our drip irrigation system is highly efficient and gets the water directly to the plants’ roots so that we can use less water per acre. We test both the irrigation water for the CSA plot and the CSA wash stand each year to be sure that it is pathogen free.

The Chatfield Farms CSA is your farm, and it is where you get your food from to feed your family. That is very important to us. We are, and always will be, committed to providing our members with the healthiest, freshest, most sustainable food possible.

We have a comprehensive food safety plan for the Chatfield Farms site to ensure the quality of our produce. We take food safety very seriously and we will continue to build on this plan for the future.

Although we have washed most of our produce once after harvesting it in the field, members should wash the produce at home again before eating. Our farm produce should be treated the same way as grocery store produce--always wash before eating! The best way to wash produce is by running it under cool water. Cleaning products are not necessary.