It’s Jersey time for fresh produce, and big regional retailers know it.
New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher visited the Kingsland Avenue Stop & Shop in Clifton, N.J., to highlight Jersey Fresh products in its produce department.
The Quincy, Mass.-based grocery retailer’s 58 New Jersey stores source produce from several local farms from the state, according to a news release, including:
- Abma’s Farm in Bergen County;
- Cassaday Farms, and Circle M Farms each in Salem County;
- Flaim Farms in Cumberland County;
- Guarino Sons Produce and Muth Family Farms each in Gloucester County;
- Pastore Orchards in Atlantic County;
- Tranquility Farms in Sussex County; and
- Vaccaro Farms in Burlington County.
“Stop & Shop’s support of New Jersey’s farmers is sincerely appreciated,” Fisher said in the release. “Local means Jersey Fresh and informs customers they are buying fruits and vegetables grown right here in the Garden State.”
On Sept. 1, the retailer currently sources and sells Jersey Fresh produce such as zucchini, plum tomatoes, eggplant, cabbage, potatoes, peaches and corn at its New Jersey stores.
Also, Stop & Shop runs a program each summer called Local Produce for Locals in Need, bringing the same local produce it sells in-store to residents who may not be able to access it.
“Stop & Shop is honored to welcome Secretary Fisher and the hardworking New Jersey farmers to our store,” Stop & Shop Vice President of Produce Brian Fleming said in the release. “Stop & Shop customers turn to us for high-quality, local produce to feed their families, and we are proud to be able to partner with and support the farmers whose work is so vital to New Jersey’s economy and to each and every New Jersey family.”
New Jersey’s 9,900 farms cover more than 750,000 acres and generate cash receipts of more than $1.1 billion each year, according to the release. Food and agriculture are New Jersey’s third largest industry, bringing in billions of dollars in revenue to the state.
“Our farm’s relationship with Stop & Shop has proved to be a very beneficial partnership for us,” Abma’s Farm Owner and Operator Jimmy Abma said in the release. “Having this important avenue to distribute and sell our produce allows us to develop a better plan for the types and amounts of crops we need to grow each year.”
Garden State farmers grow more than 100 different kinds of fruits and vegetables, and New Jersey is ranked in the top 10 nationally in the production of blueberries, cranberries, peaches, tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, sweet corn, spinach, squash and asparagus.
To learn more about Jersey Fresh, go to www.FindJerseyFresh.com. For social media, try Facebook at www.facebook.com/JerseyFreshOfficial, Twitter at @JerseyFreshNJDA and Instagram at @JerseyFreshNJDA.
