CSA Food Safety & Quality

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. – 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 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 our inputs, from seed to fruit, adhere to 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 highly efficient drip irrigation system gets water directly to plant roots, resulting in less water use per acre. We test both the irrigation water for the CSA plot and the CSA washstand each year to be sure that it is pathogen free.

The Chatfield Farms CSA is your farm, and it is where you get food 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 Chatfield Farms to ensure the quality of our produce. We take food safety very seriously and we will continue to build on this plan.

Although we wash most of the produce after harvesting it in the field, members should wash it again at home 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.