Even while winter lingers on the calendar, spring is already underway here on the farm. Our team has already been mapping out field plans, planting seeds, and preparing for the first early harvests of the season from our high tunnels and greenhouses. All of this work leads to one of our favorite parts of the year—CSA season.
Our 2026 Freshly Inspired CSA begins at the end of April and runs through December, bringing a full season of farm-fresh fruits and vegetables straight from our fields to your table. Each week, our farmers harvest the best produce available and carefully pack it into your share so you can truly savor what’s in season.
Why Join a CSA?
Joining a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program connects you directly with the people growing your food. Instead of produce traveling hundreds or even thousands of miles before reaching your plate, your food comes from a local farm—often harvested just hours before you receive it.
Members enjoy produce that is fresher, more flavorful, and packed with nutrients because it’s picked at peak ripeness. It’s also a great way to discover new seasonal varieties and enjoy the natural rhythm of the growing season.
Just as importantly, CSA membership supports local agriculture. By joining, you help farmers plan crops months in advance and continue caring for farmland in your community.
Flexible Options for Every Household
Our CSA is designed to fit a variety of lifestyles and household sizes. Members can choose the share size that works best for them:
- Personal Share – about 8–10 lbs. of produce each week, perfect for individuals or couples
- Half Share – about 12–15 lbs. weekly, our most popular option
- Full Share – about 25–30 lbs. weekly, ideal for families or those who love cooking with lots of variety
You can also select the length of your membership, choosing from 12, 22, or the full 34–36 week season, allowing you to enjoy farm-fresh produce for as long as you’d like.
Customize Your Weekly Harvest
One of the best features of our program is the ability to customize your box each week. Using our online system, members can adjust preferences, swap items, remove items, or add favorites to their share. This flexibility helps reduce waste and ensures you receive produce your household will truly enjoy.
Our farm grows over 250 varieties of fruits and vegetables, including berries and orchard fruits like strawberries, blueberries, peaches, plums, pears, nectarines, and apples throughout the season. Many crops are grown using sustainable practices, with a portion of the farm certified organic.
Making Farm Fresh More Convenient Than Ever
This season, we’re introducing new ways to make your CSA experience even easier.
New! Announcing $5 Local Home Delivery
We are enhancing our delivery service to make it more convenient than ever. This season, members can receive direct local home delivery every Wednesday for just $5 per week, bringing fresh produce boxes straight from our farm to your doorstep. The $5 delivery area includes locations approximately within a 10-mile radius of Alstede Farms in Chester, Alstede Fresh at Chester, Alstede Fresh at Bridgewater, and Alstede Fresh at Lindeken Farms.
Members can also add farm-fresh pantry staples and specialty items to their weekly box, making it easier to shop directly from the farm while planning meals for the week.
To help you make the most of your share, weekly recipes and helpful tips are provided, giving you inspiration and ideas to make mealtime easier while enjoying farm-fresh ingredients.
More Than Just a Produce Box
CSA membership includes more than a weekly harvest. Members enjoy additional benefits throughout the season, including:
- Free Pick Your Own (PYO) admission (just pay for the container)
- Invitations to CSA Day, an exclusive members-only farm event
- Free admission to one Harvest Moon Hayride
- Seasonal farm store surprises and specialty offerings
Eat Farm Fresh All Season Long
Our CSA is the longest farm share program in the area, beginning in late April and continuing through December. From the first spring greens and strawberries to summer tomatoes and sweet corn, and finally to fall apples and hearty vegetables, the harvest changes week by week—giving members a true taste of the seasons.
Enrollment for the 2026 Freshly Inspired CSA is now open, and shares fill quickly. Join today to enjoy the convenience of fresh food grown just miles from home while supporting your local farm. Learn more here. Eat farm fresh all season long—direct from the grower, your local farm.
As we look ahead to the growing season, we’re also proud to recognize Women’s History Month (March 2026), International Women’s Day (March 8), and the 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer, celebrating the many women who have shaped agriculture. Pioneers like Elizabeth Coleman White, who helped develop the cultivated blueberry industry in New Jersey, Mary Engle Pennington, whose work advanced food safety and cold storage, and Harriet Williams Russell Strong, who innovated in irrigation and water management, paved the way for generations of women in farming. Here at Alstede Farms, that legacy continues through the leadership of Mary, Rebekah, and Sarah as co-owners of the family farming business—helping guide the farm’s future while continuing a long tradition of women contributing to agriculture in New Jersey and beyond.
